Faculty
The school staff is selected based on educational qualifications, certification, proficiency in English, Islamic values and relevant experience. All staff have a high degree of commitment to Islamic values supplemented by sound academic backgrounds and experience. The principal supervises all activities of the school under the rules and regulations set by the school committee and the board of trustees. The teachers, school personnel, and volunteers work under the supervision of the principal.
Sr. Nur’Izzah Khalil, B.A., M.Ed.
Principal
Sr. Nur earned her Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Psychology from the University of Calgary, Canada, and holds a Master’s degree in Educational Leadership from Bridgewater State University. She is a licensed K-6 administrator with the Massachusetts Department of Education and has worked with the City of Calgary, with the Government of Singapore, has over a decade of advertising experience and comes from a family of educators. Sr. Nur became part of the ANA family in 2003 as our middle-school Social Studies teacher first, and later as our third-grade teacher before assuming her current leadership role. She is ever thankful to Allah s.w.t. for this rare opportunity to make a difference in the community and to help shape the minds of our precious Muslim-American youth.
Sr. Nur may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Aminah K. Muhammad, A.S.
Assistant Registrar
Sr. Aminah serves many roles at Al-Noor Academy. She has her Associate’s degree from Northeastern University. She has extensive experience having worked in Islamic schools since 1984 in both Massachusetts and Mississippi. Sr. Aminah has been with Al-Noor Academy since 2000 and started full-time in 2006. She can be found at both campuses serving as a lifeline between parents, students, and teachers. Her favorite activities include working with children, reading, and sewing when she has the time to sew!
Sr. Aminah may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Dalal Aldajani, B.S.
Administrative Manager
Sr. Dalal graduated from University of Jordan with a Bachelor’s degree in civil engineering and has taught in an Islamic school in London, UK, for three years. Subsequently she participated in a Saturday Islamic school for two years in Cambridge, MA, and currently holds an administrative position at ANA-Sharon campus. Outside of work, Sr Dalal actively leads a Girls Scout troop and is skilled in arts and crafts projects.
Sr. Dalal may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Nour hakim, B.A.
Religion Teacher, B.Sc.
Sr. Nour holds a degree in Engineering from Tishreen University in Syria and also studied Islamic Studies for 2 years at a college called Zad Academy. She has experience teaching Math in the UAE and has been an involved community member in education since her family moved to the US. Sr. Nour has not only taught Religion, Quran and Arabic at ICNE’s Saturday school, and at Noble Academy, but has also been a part of our Arabic department at our school in the past. Sr. Nour has also supervised and taught all Quran classes held at the Brockton masjid these past three years. She is looking forward to rejoining ANA and a successful year together with students, and our ANA community.
Sr. Nour may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Asma Shaqrah, B.A., M.A.
Quran Teacher & Tarbiyah Coordinator
Sr. Asma Shaqrah obtained her Bachelor’s Degree in Arabic Language and Literature from the University of Jordan, and her Master’s Degree from American College. She has been teaching Arabic for 10 years; 3 years in Jordan and 7 years at Al-Noor Academy. Sr. Asma is the head of the Arabic Department at Muslim American Society Council of Islamic Schools (MASCIS) and has done many projects in the school such as “My School” video clip and the Arabic Calligraphy project. Sr. Asma’s goal is to help the students understand Quran through teaching Arabic to build strong Muslims and build a strong Muslim community.
Sr. Asma may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Rachida Benkaci
Arabic Lead Teacher
With over ten years of experience teaching Arabic language at our ANA-Sharon campus, Sr. Rachida is a certified Arabic teacher from Algiers. Armed with extensive knowledge in Arabic language and literature, she has been a driving force behind the Arabic department, has given workshops and has contributed tremendously towards instilling the love of the holy language of the Quran in the hearts and minds of our students for many years. We welcome her back with a prayer that she may continue with her dedicated service to the school with the same zeal so that our students go on to learn and excel in the Arabic language, insha’Allah.
Sr. Rachida may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. duaa ali, B.Sc, MSc.
Preschool Teacher
Sr. Duaa holds a Bachelor’s degree in Engineering from Helwan University, and a Master’s degree in Computer Science from Boston University. With two of her very own children at Al-Noor Academy, Sr. Duaa is invested in the success of Islamic education and has been volunteering her time extensively at ANA prior to joining our faculty. She is presently pursuing further education in Early Childhood at Fisher College.
Sr. Duaa may be reached at [email protected].
mrs. cate kominsky
Preschool Gym Teacher
Mrs. Cate Kominsky is a graduate of Northeastern University with a Bachelor’s of Science degree in Behavioral Sciences and has an extensive curriculum development and teaching experience with significant involvement in our beloved Al-Noor Academy and ICNE community. Mrs. Cate loves teaching physical fitness and nutrition to all our students.
Mrs. Cate may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. oumeima terki
Preschool Teacher
Sr. Oumeima holds a Bachelor’s degree in Computer Science from the University of Constantine, Algeria, and is a licensed preschool lead teacher. She had been working at the Lowell YMCA for three years prior to joining Al-Noor Academy and is now excited to be a part of our school community.
Sr. Oumeima can be reached at [email protected].
Teacher Assistants
Sr. Hebaallah Hasan, B.A., M.Ed.
Kindergarten Teacher & Early Elementary Lead Teacher (PreK-2)
Sr. Heba is our Lead Teacher for our two preschool classes. She has a Bachelor’s degree in Classical Languages and Literature from Ain Shams University in Cairo, Egypt and majored in Greek and Latin. She successfully received her Master’s in Education with a major in Early Childhood from American College. Sr. Heba is a certified pre-school teacher with the Department of Early Education and Care (EEC). She has enjoyed working with our beautiful four-year-old children since 2004.
S.r Heba may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Bakhtawar Nayyar, B.A., M.B.A.
Kindergarten Teacher
Sr. Bakhtawar obtained her Bachelor’s degree in Economics and Sociology from Amina College Pehsawar, Pakistan and has a Masters in Business Administration from Bahria University, Pakistan. She moved to USA in 2015 and started studying Elementary Education (K-8) from University of Maine. She volunteered in Sunday schools at Islamic Centre of Maine and also at Al-Noor academy. In her free time she loves to travel and playing with her two children.
Sr. Bakhtawar may be reached at [email protected].
Ms. Souheir Al-Mousa, Assoc. Degree
First Grade Teacher
Ms. Souheir grew up in Damascus, Syria. She studied French literature at Damascus University and has Early Childhood Teacher certification with EEC. She lived with her family in Saudi Arabia for four years, in Oman for two years, and in the United Arab Emirates for three years. While in the Emirates, she worked in the library at the American University of Sharjah. Ms. Souheir relocated to Massachusetts in 2002 and began working at our ANA-Sharon campus that year as a kindergarten assistant and has been our kindergarten teacher for more than ten years. Ms. Souheir celebrates her students’ growth and learning during the year they are with her. She enjoys the privilege of being able to see them read and write their first words.
Ms. Souheir may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. MaryLou Elhusayni, B.S.
First Grade Teacher
Sr. MaryLou has a Bachelor’s degree in Science from Roger Williams University. Over the years, Sr. MaryLou has been co-teaching Kindergarten, First and Second grades, taught Spanish to our students, and has been actively involved in fundraising activities for our school.
Sr. Marylou may be reached at [email protected].
sr. Busra algur B.Sc.
First Grade Teacher
Sr Busra obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Biology from the University of Trakya and, prior to her foray into education, she had experience working as an Embryologist in Cologne, Germany. She subsequently pursued her interest in education and earned her certification in Education Pedagogy from 18 Mart University in Turkey. Upon her relocation to the U.S., Sr Busra taught Science, Quran and Religion at the Boston Dialogue Foundation for a number of years. She is a mother of three and is acutely passionate about teaching.
Sr Busra may be reached at [email protected]
Ms. Paula Pereira, B.Ed.
Second Grade Teacher
Ms. Paula is a graduate of University of Rhode Island with a Bachelor’s degree in Education and is a certified ESL instructor. She has an extensive 25 years of teaching experience in the Middle East educating multi-cultural groups of students and is additionally fluent in Portuguese, French and Arabic. She is excited to anchor herself as a part of our Al-Noor Academy community having now returned back to the United States.
Ms. Paula may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Fatuoma Ibrahima, B.S.
Third Grade Teacher
Sr. Fatuoma obtained her bachelor degree of science in Agricultural Economics in 2008. Since graduating, she has worked with children 0-18 years of age in many roles including education. She joined the Islamic School Columbia, Missouri, in the 2016 and worked as a homeroom for 5 years teaching both 3rd and 2nd grades. Sr. Fatuoma loves getting involved in all types of community work, especially working with youth and look forward to the opportunities our Al-Noor community has to offer and to get involved!
Sr. Fatuoma may be reached at [email protected].
Sr. Bouchra Dariane, B.S.
Third Grade Co-Teacher
Sr. Bouchra received her Bachelor of Science degree in Health Management from Northeastern University. Sr. Bouchra enjoys reading and helping young children in Math. She loves seeing the excitement that children bring to school each day. She believes in enriching students’ holistic growth, both academically and socially. Sr. Bouchra is looking forward to being a part of Al-Noor Academy for many years to come.
Sr. Bouchra may be reached at [email protected].
Fourth Grade Teacher
4th-5th ELA & Social Studies Teacher
Ms. Cashman earned her Bachelor of Arts Degree from Bridgewater State University, and holds a Master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction from Southern New Hampshire University. She is a licensed 8th-12th History teacher in the state of Massachusetts and has experience working in the Hingham Public Schools with both K-5 and high school students.
Ms. Cashman may be reached at [email protected].
Mrs. Shamaila Zia, MD
Fifth Grade – Homeroom Teacher
4th-5th Math & Science Teacher
Mrs. Zia received her Bachelor’s of Medicine & Surgery degree from Dow University of Health Sciences, Karachi in 1992. She then completed her medical internship in Medicine & Surgery from Civil Hospital, Karachi, receiving excellence in both. In her medical school, she actively participated in debates and received the best debater award. She relocated to the U.S. in 2001 and brings her passion for science to the classroom. She has taught science to grades six through 10 and has served as our fourth-grade homeroom teacher since 2015-16. She has also contributed to the community volunteering as ICNE-Sharon’s Youth Director, Women’s Event Organizer and Sunday School Teacher.
Br. Zineddine Benkaci
School Maintenance
Br. Zineddine is another familiar face amongst the staff at IANE and ANA. Br. Zine has been in charge of the janitorial services at both schools for many years now. Not only have his services been invaluable in maintaining the buildings at both schools, this father of three’s daily presence at the school has always been a source of comfort and joy for all the staff at the school where everyone has embraced him as part of their family and has depended on his helping hand time and time again. Alhumdulilah, Br. Zine will be continuing his service to the school again this year and we welcome him back with great warmth and joy.
Br. Dirgham Al-Khalaf
Safety Attendant
Br. Dirgham is fondly known amongst our students and school community as “Br AbouAhmad”, and has played an important role in securing the safety of our students and staff. He is frequently seen patrolling our school grounds and supporting our morning arrival and dismissal process. Br Dirgham has five young children and is an active member of our greater Sharon-Mansfield community.
mr. ruben mendez
School Janitor
Mr. Ruben Mendez plays a critical role in ensuring that our buildings at both Mansfield and Sharon campuses remain spotless! He joined ANA faculty in 2014 after working with the school for the four previous years through a private cleaning company. Mr. Ruben enjoys soccer and lives with his wife and two sons.