Karima Alavi is program director for the Dar al Islam Madressah in Abiquiu, NM, where she directs a summer institute for American teachers titled “Understanding and Teaching About Islam.” She has over 25 years experience in teaching, and curriculum development in the areas of history and Islamic studies and has presented more than 100 conference workshops. Alavi also does teacher training for the World History Association, New Mexico Advance Placement, and the National Council for the Social Studies. An American convert to Islam, Alavi studied in Iran in 1976 as a Bicentennial Scholar. After completing her MA in History at Kent State University, she retuned to Iran in 1978-‘79 to teach at the University of Isfahan. She chose to remain in Iran after the Americans were evacuated, and stayed for the remainder of the Islamic Revolution. Upon returning to the U.S., she taught at Quaker institutions such as Wilmington College of Ohio and The Sidwell Friends School in Washington, D.C. Her publications include a high-school curriculum unit, “Emergence of Renaissance: Cultural Interactions Between Europeans and Muslims” (co-authored with Susan Douglass of the Council on Islamic Education), as well as several chapters for Calliope and Cobblestone Publications on Baghdad’s House of Wisdom, Hijab, and the Qur’an. Her magazine articles include “What are American Children Learning About Islam,” “At Risk of Prejudice: Teaching Tolerance Toward Muslim Americans,” and “Thoughts on the CNN Special on the Iranian Elections” published in 2000. Alavi returned to Iran in 2003 and 2004 to accompany educators’ tours for which she served as Primary Lecturer. She’s also writing a fictional novel based on her experiences during the Islamic Revolution of 1979.

		505-685-4584
		kdalavi@valornet.com

Seminar speeches given by Karima Alavi:

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