By Soraya Mitta

Mar/Apr 25

How do we change the world? With this pivotal question, A Continuous Charity (ACC) co-founder, Faizan Syed, opened his landmark speech at the 61st Annual ISNA Conference, which was held last Labor Day weekend. ACC’s mission provides the much-needed answer: one student at a time. 

ACC’s vision is to foster a generation of graduates who will have a strong Muslim identity and be well-versed in their fields, using both for the benefit of all mankind. 

Many Muslim parents make sacrifices to ensure their children sail through college and university without taking loans. However, not everyone can achieve this goal. For those who are hindered in some way or another, there is hope. ACC is a 501(c)3 organization established in 2013 that provides interest-free loans to Muslim students throughout North America, helping them achieve their professional dreams and aspirations without the burden of riba (interest). 

At ACC, investment in both the spiritual and intellectual development of Muslim students is the key to seeing change in the future. 

Interest-Free Education Can Change Everything

According to the U.S. Department of Education, 70% of college students will graduate with debt, most of which includes interest-bearing loans. Nearly 43 million Americans have student loan debt, totaling $1.77 trillion. Student debt is the second highest level of consumer debt, following mortgages. More Americans suffer from snowballing student debt than credit card and auto debt combined. 

Some Muslim students seeking to avoid riba may even be forced to walk away from educational opportunities to avoid loans that clash with their religious principles. ACC offers an alternative by offering student loans in keeping with traditional Muslim values. To date, ACC has awarded 584 students around $8.3 million in educational loans, preventing them from being saddled by almost $4.9 million in riba-based debt. These loans, once paid back, are distributed to other Muslims students to support their education, and the cycle continues. This recycling of funds is a unique, one-of-a-kind model known as a Sadaqah Jariyah, or a continuous charity. 

Every Student Has a Story 

Some of the program’s beneficiaries have shared their unique experiences with Islamic Horizons. 

Abdulaziz: “I was 13 years old when the revolution began.”

At the age of 20, Abdulaziz, now 27, left Syria for the possibility of higher education in the United States. As he left his homeland, the deep impression of war remained in his heart.

“One of my high school classmates was kidnapped, and I lived in constant fear that the same could happen to me,” he said. “We faced frequent power outages, a deteriorating currency, and the constant threat of violence. Bombs fell from the sky, and one even struck my grandmother’s apartment while she and my grandfather were praying.”

Through the difficult times, Abdulaziz relied on his faith to sustain him. “I always remind myself that many others in Syria and Palestine endured far greater suffering, yet they remained resilient and steadfast. Their strength has been a profound source of inspiration for me.”

After leaving Syria, the road to education in America was not always an easy one. Abdulaziz explains, “There was a time when I considered leaving my program when I faced tough financial constraints.” 

In the end, Abdulaziz was able to fund his education in a halal manner as a recipient of an ACC interest-free loan. Now, this Columbia University graduate wishes to use his bachelor’s degree in architecture and his master of science degree in construction administration to help his home country.

“My professional aspiration is to go back to Syria, In Sha Allah, and participate in the rebuilding process,” he said. “I pray for Allah’s help in making this vision a reality and creating a model that can inspire communities globally.”

Abdulwaliy: “I discovered my role as a part of humankind. . . a slave of The Guardian.”

Abdulwaliy, 33, is a senior at Marshalltown Community College in Marshalltown, Iowa, majoring in Applied Mathematics with the dream of becoming a physician.  

Born and raised in Nigeria, he left his homeland behind, entering the U.S. on a student visa to pursue his academic aspirations. Abdulwaliy, a born helper, felt he needed to pursue the purpose that God had laid out for him. 

“I am inspired [by] the route of human discovery and family studies to aid our Muslim community,” he said. “I discovered my role as a part of humankind. . . a slave of The Guardian.”

Considering the high cost of education, he applied to ACC, firmly rooted in his principles of avoiding riba. His submission resonated with the ACC application committee and he was awarded financial support. 

This funding is now helping him obtain the education necessary to care for others. “I am inspired to seek knowledge that prioritizes humankind. I was accommodated,” he said. 

Encouraging others to donate to this Sadaqah Jariyah, he added, “I imagine such behavior as an extension on righteousness.” He went on to recite, “[those]. . . who give charity out of their cherished wealth to relatives, orphans, the poor, needy travelers, beggars, and for freeing captives” (Quran, 2:177).

Currently, Abdulwaliy looks to remain in the United States, and use his knowledge to support the ummah given his deep ties to the Muslim community in his adopted country. 

“I espouse a reality [where] I am interconnected,” he said. 

Mohammad: “Alhamdulillah, one thing I learned is that hardship builds a person.”

Mohammad, 27, is currently studying physical therapy at Hunter College in New York City. While he grew up in the suburbs of Brooklyn, the first five years of his life were spent in a village in Pakistan.  

When he began his pursuit of advanced academic studies, he realized the difficulties in avoiding riba.  

Through this trying time, he remained patient and steadfast. “Alhumdulillah, one thing I learned is that hardship builds a person,” Mohammad said. “There are too many blessings we overlook.”  

He found out about ACC from a friend, applied and was awarded a loan that allowed him to embark on the journey towards becoming a physical therapist. 

At one point, Mohammad feared that he wouldn’t be able to find a program that could accommodate both his spiritual and professional goals. As a proud Muslim, Mohammad said that ACC’s interest-free loans are a blessing.

“I believe [seeking knowledge] is one avenue for bettering oneself and fostering a means for receiving rizq [sustenance],” he said. “[This loan] enables me to have a career, which will, In Sha Allah, be a source from which I draw inspiration and confidence in order to make positive connections and efforts in the world.”

ACC strives to make positive change in the world through funding Muslim students interest-free. Many students have benefited from these loans which will facilitate the educational opportunities that will work to shape the students of today into leaders of tomorrow, In Sha Allah. 

Soraya Mitta is a freelance writer who is passionate about her faith.

The post Organization Funds Higher Education for Muslims Through Interest-Free Student Loans appeared first on Islamic Horizons.

By Hamza Mohammed

Jan/Feb 2024

According to the Common Application, more than 1.2 million students in the U.S. applied to four-year colleges for the 2023 academic year. To pay tuition, many of them turn to student loans, which often come with high interest rates. As a result, many Muslim students struggle to find a way to pay for higher education while avoiding riba. Unfortunately, some find themselves forced to forgo their pursuit.

According to a March 2023 Forbes report, each year it’s common to see students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds applying to college. About 54% of applicants hailed from the most affluent 20% of ZIP codes, compared to just 7% from the bottom quintile.

The Texas-based A Continuous Charity (ACC; https://acceducate.org) seeks to solve this problem by providing interest-free loans. The organization, which receives funds directly from donors as well as through local fundraisers, helps Muslim college students achieve their goals of higher education. 

Founded by a Community

Dr. Athar Haq founded ACC in 2013. Having received a loan from his parents to cover his costs while pursuing his medical school degree, he wondered why this process couldn’t be replicated on the community level. Thus, he and a group of friends began to lend money to Muslim students in need of loans. As the loans were repaid, they would lend the received money to the next student in line. 

Seeking to support more Muslim students through halal interest-free loans, they formalized their model and registered ACC as a 501(c)3 nonprofit organization. Over their almost 10-year existence, ACC has gone nationwide and has branches in Illinois, California, Florida, Ohio and other states.

This year, ACC is celebrating its 10th anniversary. As of this date, it has prevented over $3 million from being paid in interest and provided over $5.5 million in educational support to 400 students nationwide.

Local Benefits with Local Rewards 

ACC loans are available to U.S. citizens or permanent residents attending a college or a four-year institution, working on a master’s or doctorate program or enrolled in a professional doctorate program in the U.S. They are also open to students who are starting their higher education, those who require more financial support to complete their degree, as well as those who have completed their higher education but have an outstanding amount of interest-based loans.

In the last application cycle, ACC received about 250 applicants — this number increases each year. Recipients are chosen based on many factors, among them merit, quest for Islamic knowledge, need for the loan and community involvement. 

“We envision that ACC awardees are attached to the Muslim community and are highly likely to re-invest their time and talent back to enriching the community,” stated Hakeemah Cummings (outreach and partnerships specialist, ACC).

As part of the application process, interviews are conducted over the phone or by video conferencing. The loan amount given to each student is based on the strength of his or her application, the amount requested and the amount of funds raised by ACC during that calendar year. Once awarded, the loan is paid directly to the applicant’s financial or educational institutions. Priority is given to those students who apply in an area where local fundraising takes place. ACC calls this “local benefits with local rewards” and seeks to reward the community’s generosity by prioritizing this benefit.

The Structure of Loans and Refinancing

ACC works to ensure that paying back the loan doesn’t become a burden by creating a personalized repayment plan for each successful applicant.

“We aim to make it easier on students,” said Cummings. “The maximum length of a loan from ACC is four years. Loan amounts are calculated based on the amount that a student will be able to pay back over the term considering their income and field of study. ACC works with every student to create an individual timeline and repayment schedule that works with these and other factors.”

ACC works with students who are unable to pay their loans due to extenuating circumstances by reassessing their loan payment schedule. If they cannot repay their loans due to becoming eligible for zakat, ACC has a limited capacity to forgive their loans with the zakat donations they receive. In addition to providing loans to students seeking a higher education, ACC also offers options to refinance existing student loans during their application cycle. 

The Legacy Fund

For those seeking a continuous donation opportunity, a sadaqa jariya (ongoing charity), ACC created the Legacy Fund. 

When the organization receives the donation, it loans that money to a student seeking higher education. As the money is paid back, it is then recycled to provide a loan for another student. Thus, the donation becomes a continuous source of reward for the donor, for it continues to be given over and over as each student benefits from it. ACC requires a minimum of $10,000 to start a legacy fund and sets up the fund once it receives the money. A legacy fund can also be started in honor of another person.

ACC believes not only in helping current students achieve their higher education goals through interest-free loans, but also in being prepared to help the next generation of students. As a result, the organization is establishing an endowment: the ACC Waqf . 

To achieve this as well as its other goals, ACC’s members hope to convince 100,000 individuals to donate $10 a month. They believe in the “power of numbers” and that receiving this small donation from supporters will enable them to reach their $10 million endowment fund goal quickly. 

Student Reflections

Ismael Gad, a student at the University of Ohio’s Knowlton School of Architecture, is working on his master’s in landscape architecture. He first found out about ACC at its booth during the MAS-ICNA Convention in Chicago. While pursuing his degree, Gad was one of only a few students selected to receive an Architectural Research Travel Award through his school. This award allowed him to research the landscape and culture, as well as to meet with the residents of Battir village in Palestine during the summer of 2023.

The ARTA grant is structured to reimburse a student only after the trip has been completed. The ACC loan thus helped alleviate Gad’s burden of paying for the trip until the university reimbursed him so he could focus on the experience.

“The application was relatively easy, compared to other applications I have filled out,” Gad said. “It didn’t feel painful at all. I would definitely recommend ACC to other students in need of an interest-free loan.”

Christopher Azdar, a student at the Illinois Institute of Technology Chicago-Kent School of Law pursuing a Juris Doctor degree, found out about ACC in late 2020 while searching for scholarships and grants to help cover the cost of law school. He considered ACC to be unique in terms of why applicants are trying to avoid riba and how their quest for Islamic knowledge can help them pursue higher education. 

“The application was very easy to navigate, and the ACC team was very responsive when I had questions,” he remarked. “The loan has been an additional push for me to continue to excel inside and outside of the classroom.”

After submitting all the necessary documents and completing the interview, Azdar received the loan, as well as loans throughout the last three years of his education. 

Azdar stated that this loan has been very important to him, because as an undocumented person (DACA) he is ineligible for many scholarship opportunities. These loans helped him attend law school while avoiding unwanted debt and interest. In addition, he didn’t have to delay his education to raise the money himself.

“Their approach to support the next generations is very forward-thinking. In order to have a strong ummah, we need Muslims in all areas and that means we need to support them in every step to get there. ACC provides the support needed to allow many students to pursue their education in a halal way,” said Azdar. “ACC has created the infrastructure to help support students, but it is up to the community to help support ACC however we can. Even with small donations and raising awareness, we can help build future leaders in all areas.“

Hamza Mohammed, an avid reader who attends Farragut High School in Tennessee, enjoys writing in his free time.

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