Mission                   
                    
To establish an educational program that utilizes traditional and non-traditional educational methods for the purpose of training young males and females how to become future leaders. To establish an educational program that focuses on producing leaders who would graduate the academy prepared to address the social, economic, political, medical, educational, environmental and religious issues that confront the global society.



Objectives      
                               
  • Build ethical and moral character based on the principles of the Abrahamic Faith
  • Instill the highest level of academic and scholastic knowledge                                        
  • Educate students in American arts and literature, culture, and  law                      
  • Educate students in Islamic history, culture, literature, and law                                  
  • Train students in apprenticeships for plumbing, carpentry, electricity                   
  • Familiarize students in the procedures for domestic and foreign history, travel                          
  • Prepare students for public speaking, editorial writings, and interviews                     
  • Establish proper health and dieting behaviors


Hear Our Sheik and Hafiz
Muhammad AbdulAti Recite
Islamic Boarding School Set To Open
by Thomas MacMillan | March 13, 2009 2:18 PM













Thomas MacMillan Photo

A new Muslim boys’ boarding school on Gilbert Avenue will be the first institution of its kind in New Haven, North America, and perhaps in the world, said founder Shafiq Abdussabur.

In its meeting this week, the Board of Zoning Appeals gave Abdussabur the green light to open his school, which will be called Omar Ibn Said Leadership Academy. Abdussabur (pictured) plans to open the school in June of this year.

Abdussabur, a city cop known for his work with youth, said that the new school will start with 30 boys. The students, aged 11, will receive three years of education in Koranic science, including memorizing the Koran and learning Arabic. What sets his school apart from other Islamic schools, Abdussabur said, is that Omar Academy will provide more than just a religious education.

“Currently in the U.S. there are approximately five known schools that teach Koranic science, but all of them teach only Koranic science,” Abdussabur said, explaining that Omar Academy students will also learn about other religions, as well as gaining the tools they need to become leaders in “modern society.”

“This is the first school in North America that brings together the secular culture and religious culture as well,” Abdussabur said. He said that Omar academy will provide a well-rounded education, with an emphasis on ethical development. The school will provide education in all major subjects, including math, science, and geography. Abdussabur said that he is using Amistad Academy — a local charter school — as a reference point for the plan for his school.

After three years of study, Omar Academy students “will likely have memorized the Koran and be fluent in Arabic and English,” Abdussabur said. A handful of high-achieving students will move into a five-year course of advanced study.

“If you’re from the mideast, you would call it a madrasah,” Abdussabur said of his school, explaining that the term “madrasah” is used to describe “the highest level of education you can get in the Islamic world.”

Abdussabur said that he and his wife, Mubarakah Ibrahim, have been developing the idea for Omar Academy for several years. Abdussabur plans to continue his job as a police officer while serving as the school’s executive director.

Abdussabur told the board that Omar Academy aims to have 20 boarding students and 10 day students. He intends to have half of the 20 boarding students come from within Connecticut and half from out of state. All the boys must have been raised practicing Islam and have at least one Muslim parent.

The students will attend the school year-round for three years, with a total of one month off each year for vacations. Yearly tuition for boarding students will be $10,400, including room and board. It will the only boarding school in the city.

The school will have three teachers, with one teacher living on the premises. Abdussabur said that he has already found the head teacher, Sheik Muhammad Abdul-Ati, a native of Egypt currently serving as an Imam in West Haven.

031009_004a.jpgOmar Academy will occupy a building (pictured) directly behind the Masjid al-Islam, a mosque on George Street. The Masjid owns the school building, along with several of the neighboring houses.

Abdussabur is in the process of raising $300,000 needed to renovate the building and open his school. The money is coming exclusively from private donations. Abdussabur said that he plans to have exclusively green, environmentally friendly construction.

Abdussabur said that he hopes to open a girls’ school in the future, but wants to start with an all-boys academy. “We want to stay in the tradition of the historical education process,” Abdussabur said, mentioning Oxford and Yale as schools that were founded as single-sex institutions. “Separating boys and girls cuts down on distractions,” he said.

Several members of the local Muslim community spoke briefly in favor of Abdussabur’s proposed school, and the board received a letter of support from local Alderman Yusuf Shah. The board gave its unanimous approval to the plan, with the conditions that there be no more than 20 boarding students and 20 day students and three parking spaces be reserved for teachers.


Source: http://www.newhavenindependent.org/archives/2009/03/islamic_boardin.php#013969more


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