Focus areas:
Grammar structures.
Sentence construction.
Elementary reading and comprehension.

September 23th – November 12th

Thursdays 6:30 – 8:30pm

Organizers: Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC) in cooperation with American Islamic College (AIC)

For sponsorship and booth information please click here to get the Sponsorship Form

Where: Auditorium, American Islamic College, 640 W. Irving Park Rd. Chicago, IL, 60613

When: 28-30 September 2010

28 September Tuesday

7.00 pm Reception with the keynote speech by Secretary General of OIC HE Dr. Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu

29 September Wednesday

8:30 Registration

9:00 Welcoming Speech by Rep. of Organizing Committee

9:10 Protocol Speeches

10:00 1st Panel : The Role of the OIC & The scope for its relations with American Muslims

• • Moderator: Ahmed Rehab, CAIR
  • Ufuk Gokcen, Ambassador of OIC to UN,
  • Rashad Hussain, Special Envoy of the White House to the Organization of the Islamic Conference
  • Sada Cumber, First U.S. Special Envoy to the OIC.

11:30 Break

11:45 2nd panel : American Foreign Policy & The Muslim World

• • Moderator: Tariq Cheema
  • Dr. John Esposito, Georgetown University
  • Hon. Keith Ellison, Congressman, Minnesota (Not Confirmed)
  • Farah Pandith, Special Representative to Muslim Communities for the United States Department of State (Not Confirmed)

1:15 Lunch and Zuhur prayer

2:00 pm 3rd panel : Islam in the American Context (Gallup Info, Socio-Historic overview, etc)

• • Moderator: Dr. Farid I. Muhammad, East-West University
  • Magali Rheault, Senior Analyst at the Gallup Center for Muslim Studies
  • Imam Prof. Misbahudden Ahmed-Rufai (Chairman, Department Social Sciences – Harold Washington College)
  • Marcia Hermansen, Loyola University Chicago

3:30 break

3:45 4th panel: Imagining Our Future (Educational, Cultural and Political Themes)

• • Moderator: Safaa Zarzour, ISNA
  • Hamza Yusuf, Zaytuna Institute (Not Confirmed)
  • Dr. Abdulalim Shabazz,
  • S. Abd Al-Hakim Jackson
  • Dr. Aminah McCloud (Director, Islamic World Studies – DePaul University)

5:15 Closing Remarks by Kareem Irfan

7:00 Dinner (Invitation only)

8.00 Music: Concert by Sami Yusuf

Tickets for the concert can be purchased online on the website  www.aicusa.edu/tickets, or can be ordered through the phone by calling  (773) 281 -4700 Mon – Fri 9:00 Am – 5:00 PM

30 September Thursday

8:00 Breakfast

9:00 Muslim Leaders meeting 1st session: Constituting “American Muslim Liaison Council” to the OIC

10:30 Break

11:00 Muslim Leaders’ meeting 2nd session

12:30 Lunch, Zuhur Prayer

1:30 Closing

Possible attendees of the meeting (Invitation only): Andre Carson, Keith Ellison, Rashad Hussein, Farah Pandith, Seyyed Hussein Nasr, Akbar Ahmad, Marcia Hermansen, Dalia Mogahed, Zeki Saritoprak, Ahmet Kurucan, Muzammil Siddiqi, Muhamad Abu Nimer, Ayse Kadayifci, Hamza Yusuf, Aminah McCloud, Syeed Said, Ahmed Rehab, Tariq Cheema, Imam Hendi, Eboo Patel, Malik Mujahid, Kareem Irfan, Zaher Sahloul, Darnell Karim. Mujahid Ghazi, Asad Busool, Ghulam Aasi, Abdulalim Shabazz, Gregory Abdullah Mitchell, Bambade Shakoor-Abdullah, Senad Agic, Kemal Karic, Safaa Zarzour, Shakeela Hassan, Sada Cumber.

During the conference period, the Calligraphy and Ebru (The art of Paper Marbling) exhibitions will be presented.

Thursdays, 6:30pm-8:30 pm

10-week course starting September 23^rd through  November 25^th, 2010.

Registration Fee: $250

This course will introduce students to the different styles of Arabic Calligraphy while focusing on Thuluth, a style that emerged in the 11th century CE. Students will be coached on using the units of measurement for each single letter of the Thuluth style as well as the relationship between the various letters of the Arabic Alphabet. In the first half of the course, the students will be using special markers that are designed with a chisel tip, similar to the traditional reed pen (Boussa) that is used by professional calligraphers. In the second half, they will be introduced to the use of the reed pen with ink, and the technique of shaping and refining their own pens. By the end of the course, students should be able to produce a composition of their own and utilize the rules of measurement to check their work for mistakes. They will also be able to distinguish between various styles and judge the authenticity of each style while relying on the rules they have learned in class.

Wednesdays, 6:30pm-8:30 pm

10-week course starting September 22^nd through November 24^th, 2010.

Registration Fee: $250

The course will focus on the use of the traditional reed pen (Qalam) for writing letters in the Thuluth style. The students will be coached on carving the pen and utilizing the technique required to produce the shapes of the letters.They will also be introduced to connecting the letters to construct words in this style. By the end of the class students will be able to produce a piece of their own calligraphy art. Students must have completed Calligraphy 101 or a comparable course as a prerequisite to Calligraphy 102.

Tuesdays, 6:30pm-8:30 pm

6-week course starting September 21^st through October 26^th, 2010.

Registration Fee: $150

Ebru, often referred to as the “dance of color on water”, is an authentic Turkish art that has been considered a spiritual art for centuries. This unique art form is produced by sprinkling color pigments into a trough of oily water and utilizes special brushes to create various designs that are then transferred onto a sheet of paper or other surface. This class will cover a variety of techniques that participants will use to create their own masterpieces. Come join us and learn the techniques of this ancient tradition.

Tuesdays, 6:30pm-8:30 pm

10 week course starting September 21^st through  November 23^rd, 2010.

Registration Fee: $250

This course is an introduction to the long and interactive history of Christian-Muslim relations and will cover the medieval period to contemporary times. It will uncover issues of stereotyping, violence, and oppression; and will highlight contexts of collaboration, reconciliation, and interreligious and intercultural dialogue. Special attention will also be given to dissecting history through challenging historical analyses. Special guests from the Christian community of the Chicago area will present on a number of topics with Dr. Aasi throughout the course.