A CISNA-Hosted Retreat
By Sufia Azmat and Susan Labadi
May/Jun 2024
A governing body thrives when policies and actions are aligned with a shared mission and vision. Mastering the art of effective governance involves stepping away from routine meetings and taking the time for reflection and vital discussions.
During Feb. 23-25, the Council of Islamic Schools based in North America (CISNA) hosted its second governance training retreat in Dallas. Around 70 leaders and board members from Islamic schools and organizations representing 27 schools and 18 states attended the event.
Having accredited 40+ Islamic schools, CISNA identified the need to provide governance training where Islamic school leaders could connect for immersive professional development. Board members and school leaders engaged with governance experts on strategic planning and decision making, board evaluation, succession planning, principal/head of school evaluation, financial sustainability and media training. As valuable as the knowledge gained from the speakers was the opportunity for board members to meet with each other and build partnerships and support systems.
From “down-under,” Ayda Succarie (PhD; MBA; graduate certificate holder in research studies, Western Sydney University) fused personal and professional identities and purpose for the 70+ attendees. Her session, “Board Self-Evaluation and Succession Planning,” encouraged attendees to examine their roles and motivations through Western and Islamic perspectives. Establishing this base of understanding, she then guided a self-analysis to explore attitudes and actions and connected them to Muslim and professional identities in a brilliant lead into board succession planning from a board and individual level scope. The session provided much food for thought with one board member stating, “She highlighted a topic about frameworks that is extremely important and rarely addressed in Islamic schools.”
Succarie has served on several boards and consults for Islamic schools and Muslim organizations. With a passion for social entrepreneurship, she is the academic lead and forging partnerships with Middle Eastern universities and industry players. She shared that the Australian government funds 80 percent of the cost of the country’s operating schools, including Islamic ones (www.researchgate.net).
The Role of the Board
Consultant Abdur-Rahman Syed (visiting faculty member, the Karachi School of Business and Leadership) and facilitator Sarah Karim’s session on “Governance Roles and Responsibilities” was the perfect blend of theory and practical application to actively engage attendees engaged in their own development and understanding that context drives much of what a board must do. Based in Dubai and Greater Detroit, Syed has two decades of experience in Islamic finance, investment, hospitality, education and philanthropy. He is interested in prophetic persuasion and advises Islamic schools and school associations on governance, strategy and marketing and caters to corporate clients’ needs.
Sarah Karim, a seasoned facilitator and consultant with 20 years of experience in social impact, leads small leadership teams to identify and analyze organizational patterns. She has designed and facilitated virtual and in-person sessions and offsites for 10-400 participants. Based in Seattle, Karim sits on multiple committees in her public school district and on a Muslim nonprofit board in her locale.
Karim and Syed’s joint presentation consisted of pre-event videos and readings to prepare attendees. Their first question was, “What can an Islamic school and its board do to make sure that no individual would want to serve on its board or lead the school?” The group enjoyed brainstorming and discussing common challenges, identifying a board’s core responsibilities, exploring the levels of engagement between it and the school’s management team, as well as connecting governance to the school’s life cycle. A key point was that context dictates how immersive a board should be in terms of school oversight and operations, but that its members should always be looking for a balance between being a passive and an operating board.
Highlighted in the session were the best practices of a board’s commitment to the duties of care, obedience, and loyalty standards related to nonprofit versus Islamic nonprofit boards. Analyzing how leaders can advance their organization through action encouraged a personal commitment by the attendees.
Nadeem Sidiqqi, who grew up in Knoxville, connected board activities to a school’s sustainability. An active community organizer, he serves on the Board of Directors of the Muslim Community of Knoxville, Annoor Academy of Knoxville, Tayseeer Seminary, and the Association of Muslim Chaplains. Siddiqi’s presentation, “Hiring and Evaluation of Principal/Head of School,” was well received and pragmatic in reminding board members to always cultivate talent and be attuned to their communities’ future needs. Siddiqi emphasized the importance of the concept of nasseehah as the foundation of a school’s evaluation protocol.
Fundraising vs. Development
While most associate a board’s prime activity with fundraising, Tayyab Yunus’ “Financial Sustainability, Oversight, and Budgeting” differentiated between fundraising and development. Development is an ongoing cycle of progressive relationship building that drives the sharing and progress of an institution’s accomplishments. He confirmed and then refuted the concept of donor fatigue, which is often defined as an organization’s failure to maintain its previous levels of donations and donor engagement.
Yunus explained that for donors to recognize the tangible impact of their generous contributions, an organization must convey concrete facts and compelling rationale. Every school should find the true cost of educating a student by dividing the total annual expenditures by the number of students. With an exact cost established, donors can understand more clearly their donation’s impact. Yunus also addressed having multiple revenue streams and accounting for capital expenditures systematically. He reminded attendees to be aware of their communities’ needs and capacities to minimize this gap and to plan accordingly.
Media Requests
Due to the genocide in Gaza, many schools have been approached by the media; however, they have been hesitant to respond to journalists. School leaders have received no media training. Mustafaa Carroll (former executive director, CAIR-Houston; interim executive director, CAIR Dallas/Ft. Worth) shared his 30+ years of experience as an advocate for civil rights and expertise in media relations. He suggested it was poor judgment to be baited into denouncing any group or malicious activity when requested to do so. Carrol’s perspective is that we should always be aware of inadvertently creating psychological associations.
For example, Carrol prefers to address the media in a neutral location rather than in a venue associated with Islam because of the connotations previously fueled by Islamophobes. He referenced how framing can promote a positive message and how interviewer framing can drag one into a defensive position. He encouraged those who need to engage with the media to come up with talking points, supportive references and facts, as well as to be cordial at all times. Carroll reminded attendees to be aware that the microphone is always on. Each table of audience members engaged in a mock interactive activity to counter an Islamophobic frame. Carroll’s style and wisdom were evident to the participants, as he shared anecdotes from his life.
The final day wrapped up with Syed, a returning presenter, providing one of the most anticipated sessions, “Strategic Planning & Decision Making,” with Sufia Azmat (executive director, CISNA) and William White (president, CISNA) facilitating. Foundational to strategic planning is knowing who the organization serves, for this enables one to comprehend ongoing dynamics and respond effectively to the organization’s deeper needs. Introducing a “Playing to Win” guiding structure helped clarify capabilities and constraints leading to strategic decision making. The session urged participants to identify three to five actionable items they could dedicate themselves to addressing within their organization, and to leverage networking opportunities to refine their plans.
The retreat was generously funded in part by a grant from the Islamic Development Bank. CISNA is also grateful to the Islamic School of Irving for its generous logistical and material support, as well as its sponsors: A Continuous Charity, the Yaqeen Institute, the Bayan Islamic Graduate School, the Center for Islam in the Contemporary World, and ISNA. Not only were slide decks and supporting resources shared by all the presenters, but ongoing professional development will also be made available through follow-up webinars.
Keep visiting www.cisnausa.org to learn about future CISNA-hosted board development training events. CISNA advocates for Islamic schools and provides accreditation services, professional development and resources to ensure institutional effectiveness — all of which lead to student success.
Sufia Azmat is the Executive Director of CISNA
Susan Labadi (president, WISER-USA.org) served as the event’s project manager.
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