Eid Opens New Doors for Zaytuna College

Dear Supporter and Friend of Zaytuna College:

Salam alaykum wa rahmatullah.

I want to first wish you a really blessed Eid al-Kabir. May every year be a good one, and may you see many Eids to come. May Allah bless you, your family, and your friends with a prosperous new year, as we begin 1434.

As we reflect on the past year, we at Zaytuna feel especially grateful for the immense support our community has shown us. We have achieved much this year: we acquired a new campus and reached many other milestones, including establishing a Memorandum of Understanding with Fatih University in Istanbul, Turkey, that enables our students, upon completion of their studies at Zaytuna, to pursue graduate studies in the MA/PhD program at Fatih, a fully accredited university. In addition, our students will have opportunities with the Graduate Theological Union in a program that grants joint degrees with UC Berkeley. And, we are also very close to our provisional WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges) accreditation.

Furthermore, we have a new vice-president, Waheed Rasheed, who comes from a distinguished background, having served as vice-president of

Waheed Rasheed

Vice President

marketing at leading companies in California's Silicon Valley. He has built a highly successful career spanning over 15 years in Business Development, Product and Strategic Marketing. He has joined us following a smooth transition from the excellent leadership of Omar Nawaz that enabled Zaytuna to raise a record amount of funds for the campus. I promise that, God-willing, you will see continuous improvement. We have ambitious plans for a much more active membership program for our monthly donors. We will continue to keep you informed with a regular online Newsletter and also offer some new online programs for our monthly donors, God-willing.

Once again, my sincere thanks and my prayers for a very blessed new year are with you.

Please keep in touch and continue to help us in this important Muslim milestone for American Islam.

Thank you and Eid Mubarak,

Hamza Yusuf

President

The Rise and Call of the American Muslim

Various types of calls invoke a variety of responses. Convocations call communities together, signaling a new academic era. At Zaytuna's Fall Convocation, our founders and faculty called for an assembly of supporters, colleagues, and students to welcome our incoming freshmen, the Class of 2016. Ceremonially, the historic assembly took place at our new campus on Holy Hill in Berkeley, a symbol of the American Muslim community's collaborative effort to establish itself intellectually in this country. Dr. Sulayman Nyang of Howard University, the keynote speaker, said, "When you look at the role of Zaytuna in the history of American education, in the manner in which our story parallels the story of other groups, you will see how Zaytuna has a significant role in the development of the Muslim presence in America."

God-willing, we look forward to returning to a humble assembly each year on the same hilly landscape with our neighbors of other faiths. And we hope that our efforts to build a reputable liberal arts college creates a way forward for the Muslim community in this country, as well as when God calls upon us in the greatest assembly in the Hereafter.

Side-by-Side: Aristotle and Imam al-Ghazali

Zaytuna College offers a liberal education that grounds students in the intellectual traditions of two major world civilizations: Islamic and Western. The two traditions, at their core, are unified in the human quest to grapple with "great ideas." Side-by-side, students read Aristotle and Imam al-Ghazali, George Bernard Shaw and Fazlur Rahman, Shakespeare and Mutanabbi.

During these blessed days of Hajj, as our students test through Socratic discussions and complete midterms on Arabic vocabulary and American history, we are also reflecting on the trials of Prophet Ibrahim, peace be upon him. Our hope is that Zaytuna graduates will become leaders who understand how Islamic and Western thought have shaped our past and contribute to shaping our future.

We invite you to learn more about our undergraduate program and encourage qualified students to apply to join the Class of 2017.

Holy Hill Has a New Neighbor

Zaytuna College acquired a new campus this Ramadan in the most prestigious academic neighborhood in Berkeley, California, known as the Holy Hill. Our new home is in the center of the largest interfaith consortium of seminaries in the United States: the Graduate Theological Union (GTU). Steps from the impressive libraries of GTU and UC Berkeley, with breathtaking views of the San Francisco Bay and Berkeley Hills, the American Muslim community could not have dreamed of a better academic address.

Your donations provide financial assistance to students, attract a world-class faculty, and hire a professional administration. We are now planning to undertake essential renovations to the new campus, which we hope to complete prior to the graduation of our first cohort of students in 2014, God-willing. This is a natural outcome of our success and growth, but it is accompanied by added financial obligations. Your continued contributions make this all possible.

Thank you, and may you have a very blessed Eid.