Our Vision
Kitaab Academy envisions a Muslim community which is deeply connected to their faith through the learning of Classical Arabic.
Our Team
Arhum Ali
Founder & CEO
Arhum Ali grew up in Chino Hills, California. He completed the memorization of the Qur’an at the Institute of Knowledge and earned a B.S. in Business Administration from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business. During his university years, he became deeply interested in the Islamic sciences. This passion led him to Amman, Jordan where he studied Classical Arabic at the Qasid Institute. During this period, Arhum also delved into key texts across Islamic sciences, earning multiple Ijazaat in Arabic grammar, notably from Shaykh Ali Hani. Additionally, he attained one of the world’s shortest Ijazaat in Qur’an recitation from Shaykh Muhammad Noor. Upon return, he transitioned into a role as a Product Manager at Zelle. Currently he serves as the CEO and Founder of Kitaab Academy.
Aashir Ali
COO
Aashir Ali grew up in Chino Hills, California. He graduated from UC Berkeley’s Haas School of Business with a B.S. in Business Administration. Aashir is passionate about helping the Muslim community with deepening their connection to the Qur’an through the resources that Kitaab Academy provides. Currently, he is pursing his CPA license while working full-time as a Senior Audit Associate.
Muhammad Faheem
Arabic Curriculum Lead & Instructor
Muhammad Faheem is originally from Atlanta, Georgia. He completed the memorization of the Qur’an at the age of 14 at the Georgia Islamic Institute. A few years later, he earned a Bachelor of Science in Industrial and Systems Engineering from Georgia Tech and went on to work as a technology consultant. Faheem studied Arabic at Kitaab Academy, where he later began serving as an instructor. He is also the former sub-regional coordinator of YM Atlanta and is currently pursuing full-time Islamic studies at Darul Qasim College.
Umayma Alshammari
Arabic Speaking Instructor
Umayma Alshammari holds a degree in English Translation from Yarmouk University in Jordan and brings over a decade of experience in teaching the Arabic language. Her teaching journey includes notable roles with the Peace Corps and Qasid Institute. Throughout her career, she has taught a wide range of Arabic genres, including Classical, Modern Standard, Media, Literature, and Diplomatic Arabic. She is also certified as an Oral Proficiency Interview (OPI) Tester by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages (ACTFL). Umayma is passionate about helping students at Kitaab Academy achieve their language goals.
Amro Shohoud
Arabic Student Instructor
Amro Shohoud grew up in Dallas, Texas, and earned a degree in Computer Science from the University of Texas at Austin. During his time at university, he developed an interest in learning Arabic and completed two semesters of Arabic coursework. After graduating, he began working full-time as a software engineer while continuing to study Arabic independently. He later joined Kitaab Academy’s part-time program and completed the full seven-course series. Afterwards, he traveled to Egypt where he spent nine months studying Arabic in an immersive environment. He is now back in the US where he is continuing his studies online while serving as an instructor at Kitaab Academy.
Fathima Haseefa
Arabic Instructor
Fathima Haseefa grew up in Southern California and completed her memorization of the Qur’an at the age of 18 under the guidance of Ustadha Aadila Kharsany and Ustadha Ayesha Ansari. After high school, she spent a gap year studying Classical Arabic with Imam Adam Jamal before earning a B.S. in Biomedical Sciences from Arizona State University. She later pursued an MPH and began her medical studies at the University of Arizona. Fathima has been teaching Qur’anic Arabic for over ten years and is the co-author of Understand Qur’anic Arabic: Arabic Made Easy. She is currently completing the ‘Alimiyyah program at Qalam Institute and works as a resident physician in emergency medicine.
Arabic Instructor
Arabic Instructor
Inaya Robinson was born in Atlanta, Georgia and began her memorization journey at the age of 10 in Senegal, West Africa, at the African American Islamic Institute. There, she studied for four years according to the Warsh style of recitation before continuing her Qur’an studies in Morocco at Zaynab Umm al-Mu’minīn, where she spent an additional year. She was also a student under Imam Hamzah Abdul-Malik at Miraaj Academy and studied Tajwid with Ustadh Ashir Kirk. Inaya is currently a student at Zaytuna College, where she is deepening her Islamic knowledge and furthering her memorization under the guidance of Qari Amar Bellaha. She serves as an Arabic and Qur’an instructor at Kitaab Academy.
Iman Khan
Arabic Lead Instructor
Iman Khan attended the Shaykh-ul-Hind program at Darul Qasim and has attained her ijāzah in the Ḥafṣ ‘an ‘Āṣim recitation of the Qur’an. She has nearly a decade of teaching experience in subjects such as Qur’an, Qāʿidah, Tajwīd, Ḥifẓ, Arabic, and Islamic Studies. She has taught at institutions including Masjid Uthman, Monarch Academy, Islamic Foundation School, and Carriers of Light, and currently serves as an instructor at Kitaab Academy. Iman has experience teaching a wide range of age groups—from preschoolers to adults—and strives to create a safe, engaging, and supportive learning environment while building meaningful connections with her students.
Jannah Khan
Arabic Instructor
Mustafa Khan
Qur'an Instructor
Born and raised in Southern California, Mustafa Khan completed his memorization of the Holy Qur’an at the age of 18 through the Institute of Knowledge (IOK) in Diamond Bar. He was formerly an online instructor for Umar Academy and also taught at IOK’s Saturday school. He currently teaches at the Ansaar Academy Sunday school program as a Qur’an instructor. In his free time, Mustafa enjoys singing as a member of Ahbab Al-Habib, an Islamic nasheed group based in SoCal. He joined Kitaab Academy as a Qur’an instructor in the summer of 2022.
Imanne Chaudhry
Qur'an Instructor
Imanne grew up in Berkeley, California. She completed her memorization of the Holy Qur’an with Qari Amar Bellaha at the Muslim Community Center in Pleasanton. Her Tajweed teachers have included Qari Amar and Ustedha Noha Leheta (Egypt), and she is currently furthering her Tajweed education with Ustedha Umm Abdullah (Jordan). Imanne holds a degree in Business Administration from the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley. As a Qur’an teacher, her passion and focus lie in helping students develop comfort and familiarity in their relationship with the book of God.
Juwayriyya Dayala
Qur'an Instructor
Juwayriyya Dayala was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois. She embarked on her Hifdh journey at the age of 4 and successfully completed memorization by the age of 11. She then began her studies of islamic sciences while teaching Qur’an. At the age of 21, she earned her Bachelor’s degree in Health Science from the University of South Florida. Currently, she is a student at the Qalam Institute in Dallas, aspiring to complete the Aalimiyyah program, Inshallah. Over the years, Juwayriyya has developed a deep love for the Qur’an through her journey, and her sole desire is to pass on that passion to her students through kindness and understanding each student’s needs.
Nabeel Farooqui
Qur'an Instructor
Nabeel grew up in the Philadelphia area, and he attended Noor ul Iman School in New Jersey from K-12, where he started his journey with Tajweed, Hifdh, and Arabic. Nabeel completed his Hifdh in 2017 and has lead Taraweeh at local masajid. Wanting to improve on his understanding of the Qur’an, Nabeel has taken up to Level 5 of Kitaab Academy’s Arabic program. He graduated with a Bachelors in CS at the University of Pennsylvania and currently works as a software engineer in New York City.
Yusuf Patel
Qur'an Instructor
Yusuf Patel grew up in Corona, California. He completed the memorization of the Qur’an at Al Rashid Islamic Institute in Cornwall Canada. He also earned a B.S. in Mechanical Engineering from University of California San Diego. Since coming back from Canada in 2016, Yusuf has taught students how to read and memorize the Qur’an at different mosques around the area. He has a passion for teaching the muslim community to improve on pronunciation, rhythm, and flow of reading the Qur’an. Currently he is based in New York and serves as a Qur’an teacher for Kitaab academy.
Zahraa Khan
Qur'an Instructor
Zahraa Khan grew up in Florida, Jordan, and California. In 2014, she completed her memorization of the Qur’an in Amman, Jordan, where she also received her Ijāzah that same year. After completing her memorization, she went on to study Arabic in Amman and has been engaged in Islamic studies throughout her life—beginning in middle school at the Institute of Knowledge, continuing through her junior high years in Jordan, and now at the collegiate level. Currently, she is a student at Zaytuna College, where she is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Liberal Arts and Islamic Studies. In the future, Zahraa aspires to continue her education and pursue a career in dentistry.
Abdullah Chauhan
Qur'an Instructor
Abdullah Chauhan was born and raised in Southern California and completed his memorization of the Holy Qur’an at the age of 18 through the Institute of Knowledge (IOK) in Diamond Bar. He currently serves as an online instructor for Umar Academy and joined Kitaab Academy as a Qur’an instructor in Spring 2025. Known for his clear and structured teaching style, Abdullah emphasizes precision and accuracy in recitation.
Fatima Khan
Qur'an Instructor
Basil Farooq
Islamic Studies Lead
Basil grew up in the UAE and the Bay Area. He completed his memorization of the Qur’an at the age of 14. Later, he completed his study of the ten canonical qirā’āt of the Qur’an and received authorization (ijāza) to transmit and teach them at Recite with Love. He completed BAs in Economics and Applied Mathematics from UC Berkeley in 2019 and works full-time as an economist in the antitrust litigation industry. He has been pursuing higher Islamic education for over 5 years and is currently a ‘Alimiyyah student at Qalam Institute in Dallas. He has studied Tafsīr, Hadith, Fiqh (Shāfi’ī and Hanafī), Usul al-Fiqh, ‘Aqīda, Tajwīd, ‘Ulum al-Qur’an and Arabic Literature. He is also currently involved in conducting research and writing on various topics within Qur’anic Studies and Tafsīr under the guidance of his teachers. He most recently published a short book titled “Within its Depths: How the Canonical Recitations Affect the Meaning of the Qur’an”
