About This Event
ISLA is honored to partner with the Family & Youth Institute (FYI) for our Fall PLC. Go beyond bullying prevention with faith-rooted, culturally responsive strategies that create safe, inclusive school environments where every student belongs.
Creating a Bully-Free Classroom - Where All Kids Belong
A 5-Week Professional Learning Community for Islamic School Leaders, Educators, Parents, Board Members & Community Members
- Wednesdays, September 30 - October 28th (5 sessions)
- Start Time: 7 pm EST | 6 pm CST | 4 pm PST
- 75 - 90 minutes
- Virtual via Zoom
Course Information:
- Informational email to be sent out to all registrants on September 16th
- Approximately 20-30 minutes of coursework each week
- Attendance, coursework, and completion of feedback survey is required to obtain a Certificate of Participation for this course.
Creating a Bully-Free Classroom — Where All Kids Belong
Session 1: From Awareness to Action — Deepening Our Understanding of Bullying
Builds on: What bullying looks like in Islamic schools + coded language
Focus: Strengthen recognition and response to nuanced harm
Decode subtle and culturally specific bullying (including coded and “joking” language)
Distinguish conflict vs. bullying vs. bias-based harm
Practice real-time response strategies for early intervention
Session 2: Creating Safe Classrooms — Moving Students from Silence to Voice
Builds on: Why students stay silent + reporting pathways
Focus: Build trust-centered environments where students speak up
Address barriers like authority dynamics, family expectations, and misuse of faith language
Design reporting systems students actually trust and use
Learn scripts and practices that affirm, protect, and empower students
Session 3: Adult Accountability — Shifting from Reaction to Prevention
Builds on: How adults unintentionally reinforce harm
Focus: Transform educator responses and classroom culture
Identify and correct common adult behaviors that enable bullying
Replace punitive habits with restorative and preventative approaches
Develop consistent, values-aligned intervention practices
Session 4: Culturally Responsive & Inclusive Islamic School Environments (Guest Speaker, Rukayat Yakub)
Builds on: Foundational awareness of harm and bias
Focus: Create classrooms rooted in belonging and dignity
Address intra-community diversity (race, culture, language, class) within Muslim students
Embed inclusive, culturally responsive teaching practices
Establish classroom norms that center dignity, equity, and mutual respect
Session 5: Restorative & Faith-Rooted Systems for Lasting Change
Builds on: Restorative circles + Prophetic models of justice
Focus: Sustain a bully-free environment through systems and practice
Facilitate restorative circles tailored for Muslim school settings
Apply Prophetic models of justice, accountability, and mercy in discipline
Build clear, consistent systems for reporting, response, and follow-up
Create a personalized, actionable classroom plan for long-term prevention
Speaker Bios:
Alaa Shareef is a researcher, curriculum developer, and community educator with The Family & Youth Institute, where she creates and implements programs to advance Muslim mental health literacy, advocacy, and family wellness. She holds dual Master’s degrees in Clinical Psychology and Mental Health Counseling from Columbia University and a Diploma in Islamic Psychology from Cambridge Muslim College. In addition to her work with The FYI, Alaa is a mental health counselor in New York, supporting clients navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, and family challenges.
Alaa has co-authored chapters in Islamophobia and Psychiatry (Springer), on the historical contributions of Muslim mental health, and in Counseling Muslims: Mental Health and Interventions (Routledge), on suicide prevention and awareness. She regularly presents nationwide on topics of faith, resilience, and healing, aiming to strengthen individuals and communities through integrative and spiritually grounded care.
Rana Khalaf is a Community Educator and speaker with The Family & Youth Institute, where she delivers educational programs that strengthen families, empower communities, and support positive youth development. She is also an educator, school leader, and leadership coach with a master's degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Alabama and a postgraduate certificate in K–12 School Administration and Principalship from Eastern Michigan University.
As the founding principal of Frontier International Academy in Warren, Michigan,Rana led the school to statewide recognition for academic excellence. Under her leadership, Frontier International Academy was recognized as one of only two National ESEA Distinguished Schools in Michigan and as one of the state's five Bright Spots: Beating the Odds in Literacy schools for outstanding third-grade literacy achievement.
After nine years as an elementary school principal,Rana now serves as a Leadership Coach and Principal Consultant for Global Educational Excellence, where she supports school leaders in instructional leadership, school improvement, and principal development. Through her work in education and community engagement, she is committed to helping children, families, educators, and school leaders thrive.
Rukayat Yakub is an award-winning children's author, educator, researcher, and founder of Heartwork, a prophetic approach to cultivating cultures of belonging. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience and deep research within Muslim educational spaces, she specializes in community culture transformation, identity formation, leadership development, and anti-Blackness education. Rukayat is an instructor at Ribāṭ Riverstead, holds an MA in Islamic Education from Bayan Islamic Graduate School, and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry in Islamic Leadership at Chicago Theological Seminary. Through Heartwork, she partners with schools, grassroots organizations, and faith leaders to strengthen communal bonds and organizational culture through prophetic ethics.
Registration is Non-Refundable
Note: Allow ISLA to continue offering high-quality professional development by not sharing Zoom links, recordings, or course materials with individuals that have not paid for course registration.
All ISLA Events are subject to a minimum number of registrants in order for the course to proceed. If the minimum threshold is not met, then the course will be postponed, registrants informed, and all fees paid will be refunded.
About This Event
ISLA is honored to partner with the Family & Youth Institute (FYI) for our Fall PLC. Go beyond bullying prevention with faith-rooted, culturally responsive strategies that create safe, inclusive school environments where every student belongs.
Creating a Bully-Free Classroom - Where All Kids Belong
A 5-Week Professional Learning Community for Islamic School Leaders, Educators, Parents, Board Members & Community Members
- Wednesdays, September 30 - October 28th (5 sessions)
- Start Time: 7 pm EST | 6 pm CST | 4 pm PST
- 75 - 90 minutes
- Virtual via Zoom
Course Information:
- Informational email to be sent out to all registrants on September 16th
- Approximately 20-30 minutes of coursework each week
- Attendance, coursework, and completion of feedback survey is required to obtain a Certificate of Participation for this course.
Creating a Bully-Free Classroom — Where All Kids Belong
Session 1: From Awareness to Action — Deepening Our Understanding of Bullying
Builds on: What bullying looks like in Islamic schools + coded language
Focus: Strengthen recognition and response to nuanced harm
Decode subtle and culturally specific bullying (including coded and “joking” language)
Distinguish conflict vs. bullying vs. bias-based harm
Practice real-time response strategies for early intervention
Session 2: Creating Safe Classrooms — Moving Students from Silence to Voice
Builds on: Why students stay silent + reporting pathways
Focus: Build trust-centered environments where students speak up
Address barriers like authority dynamics, family expectations, and misuse of faith language
Design reporting systems students actually trust and use
Learn scripts and practices that affirm, protect, and empower students
Session 3: Adult Accountability — Shifting from Reaction to Prevention
Builds on: How adults unintentionally reinforce harm
Focus: Transform educator responses and classroom culture
Identify and correct common adult behaviors that enable bullying
Replace punitive habits with restorative and preventative approaches
Develop consistent, values-aligned intervention practices
Session 4: Culturally Responsive & Inclusive Islamic School Environments (Guest Speaker, Rukayat Yakub)
Builds on: Foundational awareness of harm and bias
Focus: Create classrooms rooted in belonging and dignity
Address intra-community diversity (race, culture, language, class) within Muslim students
Embed inclusive, culturally responsive teaching practices
Establish classroom norms that center dignity, equity, and mutual respect
Session 5: Restorative & Faith-Rooted Systems for Lasting Change
Builds on: Restorative circles + Prophetic models of justice
Focus: Sustain a bully-free environment through systems and practice
Facilitate restorative circles tailored for Muslim school settings
Apply Prophetic models of justice, accountability, and mercy in discipline
Build clear, consistent systems for reporting, response, and follow-up
Create a personalized, actionable classroom plan for long-term prevention
Speaker Bios:
Alaa Shareef is a researcher, curriculum developer, and community educator with The Family & Youth Institute, where she creates and implements programs to advance Muslim mental health literacy, advocacy, and family wellness. She holds dual Master’s degrees in Clinical Psychology and Mental Health Counseling from Columbia University and a Diploma in Islamic Psychology from Cambridge Muslim College. In addition to her work with The FYI, Alaa is a mental health counselor in New York, supporting clients navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, and family challenges.
Alaa has co-authored chapters in Islamophobia and Psychiatry (Springer), on the historical contributions of Muslim mental health, and in Counseling Muslims: Mental Health and Interventions (Routledge), on suicide prevention and awareness. She regularly presents nationwide on topics of faith, resilience, and healing, aiming to strengthen individuals and communities through integrative and spiritually grounded care.
Rana Khalaf is a Community Educator and speaker with The Family & Youth Institute, where she delivers educational programs that strengthen families, empower communities, and support positive youth development. She is also an educator, school leader, and leadership coach with a master's degree in Educational Psychology from the University of Alabama and a postgraduate certificate in K–12 School Administration and Principalship from Eastern Michigan University.
As the founding principal of Frontier International Academy in Warren, Michigan,Rana led the school to statewide recognition for academic excellence. Under her leadership, Frontier International Academy was recognized as one of only two National ESEA Distinguished Schools in Michigan and as one of the state's five Bright Spots: Beating the Odds in Literacy schools for outstanding third-grade literacy achievement.
After nine years as an elementary school principal,Rana now serves as a Leadership Coach and Principal Consultant for Global Educational Excellence, where she supports school leaders in instructional leadership, school improvement, and principal development. Through her work in education and community engagement, she is committed to helping children, families, educators, and school leaders thrive.
Rukayat Yakub is an award-winning children's author, educator, researcher, and founder of Heartwork, a prophetic approach to cultivating cultures of belonging. Drawing on more than 25 years of experience and deep research within Muslim educational spaces, she specializes in community culture transformation, identity formation, leadership development, and anti-Blackness education. Rukayat is an instructor at Ribāṭ Riverstead, holds an MA in Islamic Education from Bayan Islamic Graduate School, and is currently pursuing a Doctor of Ministry in Islamic Leadership at Chicago Theological Seminary. Through Heartwork, she partners with schools, grassroots organizations, and faith leaders to strengthen communal bonds and organizational culture through prophetic ethics.
Registration is Non-Refundable
Note: Allow ISLA to continue offering high-quality professional development by not sharing Zoom links, recordings, or course materials with individuals that have not paid for course registration.
All ISLA Events are subject to a minimum number of registrants in order for the course to proceed. If the minimum threshold is not met, then the course will be postponed, registrants informed, and all fees paid will be refunded.