INSTRUCTORS

Dr. Betool Ridha is a counseling psychologist currently based in New Orleans Dr. Ridha completed her bachelor of science degree in psychology at Xavier University of Louisiana in New Orleans, then later went on to earn both her masters and doctoral degrees in counseling psychology at Auburn University She has experience working in a variety of clinical settings including college counseling centers, inpatient clinics, outpatient clinics, and private practice.

She also has experience teaching counseling and psychology courses at the undergraduate level at Auburn University. In her clinical practice, Dr. Ridha specializes in treating and assessing mood disorders, as well as behavioral, relational, and trauma-related concerns among adults. She also highly values training and supervision, and has been actively involved in the training of future psychologists.

Dr. Vinay Khetia is an accomplished academic who has taken great strides in the field of religious studies. With his exceptional qualifications, including a PhD in Religious Studies from McMaster University and an MA in History and Philosophy of Religion from Concordia University, his contributions to the academic community are unparalleled. Dr. Khetia has had his published works on Islamic law and exegesis well received, reflecting his immense knowledge on the subject matter. In particular, his areas of interest include Twelver Shi’ism, which has become a focal point for his studies.

What sets Dr. Khetia apart is his dedication and perseverance in pursuing his studies in various Islamic seminaries over 20 years. His time at these seminaries honed his expertise and deepened his passion for the subject matter. This dedication and passion are evident in his guest lectureship at Harvard University and as a lecturer at both McMaster University and the University of Toronto. These accomplishments highlight Dr. Khetia’s unwavering commitment to his field and his continuous drive to educate others on important religious topics.

Shaykh Mahdi Mohammadpour Shahkolahi is currently pursuing doctoral study in the Department of Theological and Religious Studies at Georgetown University. Raised in Maryland, Shaykh Mahdi earned his B.S. in Information Systems from the University of Maryland, Baltimore County (cum laude). Upon graduation, he spent 9 years studying traditional seminary sciences in Qom, Iran, earning a B.A. in Islamic Studies and Jurisprudence (summa cum laude), and an M.A. in Islamic Studies and Jurisprudence, with a minor in Philosophy (magna cum laude), from the Islamic Seminary of Qom. During his graduate studies in Qom, Shaykh Shahkolahi also served as a lecturer at the Islamic Seminary of Qom, teaching undergraduate courses in Arabic Morphology (sarf), Arabic Syntax (nahw), and kalam. Shaykh Shahkolahi serves the Muslim community – both in the Washington, D.C. metro area and throughout North America.

Shaykh Amin Rastani traveled to the holy city of Qum after high school in 1999 to pursue hawzah studies in the Hawzah Ilmiyyah of Qum. Due to references by scholars in the US, he was able to get into one of the top schools therein, and graduated from the six-year introductory level covering all Islamic disciplines, after which, he began the four year intermediate level of fiqh and usul al-fiqh studies (namely the works of the late Shaykh Murtadha al-Ansari of “Makasib” and “Rasa’il”). Afterwards, he had the opportunity to participate in advanced kharij fiqh classes. He also holds a master’s degree in Semitic religions with a dissertation on the Code of Canon Law (Catholicism) through the University of Religions and Denominations of Qum. Shaykh Amin is also a teacher of the Howza and lectures internationally on various occasions of the Islamic year. In 2017, he moved back to the US and is currently serving the Dallas community.

Ahmed Almusawi earned his BA in Psychology from George Mason University in 2012 and his MA in Clinical Psychology from Millersville University in 2017. His previous experience includes working with adults with mood disorders, developmental disorders, and other populations. Currently, he works with children and adolescents, and plans to work with adults again in the near future. His goal is to dispel myths surrounding mental health and provide psychoeducation to normalize seeking therapy and other help, especially within the Muslim-American community. He currently lives in Michigan and is licensed as an LLPC there.

Dr. Dowlati is a psychology professor with more than 30 years of teaching experience in different universities in Washington, DC, New York, and Tehran. The focus of his research and presentations has been human cognition and life-span development. Since 1992, he has served Iranian-American communities as a lecturer, counselor, teacher, and school principal.

Tracey Cairnie (MS PCC) is a professional certified coach (PCC) and has a master’s degree in Conflict Analysis and Resolution. Tracey is a frequent trainer and consultant to corporations and federal, state and local government agencies, non-profit organizations, and individual executives, in various topics, including organizational and leadership development, communications, group dynamics and performance optimization. Tracey has nearly 30 years of experience working with clients involved in the fields of science, business, legal, finance, health care, and education, among others.

Shaykh Mohammad al-Ali al-Halabi studied at the Islamic seminary of Qom from 1987 to 1999. He completed advanced (kharij) classes under prominent Ayatullahs such as: Shaykh Hassan al-Jawahiri, Shaykh Hadi al-Radhi, Sayyid Hussain al-Shahroodi, Mirza Jawad al-Tabrizi and Shaykh Fadhil al-Lankarani.

He taught different levels of Hawzah Studies and Arabic at the Islamic Seminary of Qom, Northern Virginia Community College (NOVA) and The Middle East Institute in Washington, D.C in 2003 and 2004

He is currently the I.M.A.M’s administrator of Religious Affairs in Dearborn, Michigan.

Rizwan Rizvi attended the Islamic Seminary of Qum in 2000 and studied under some of the best and most renowned theologians of the Hawzah. After completing general coursework in Arabic literature, Jurisprudence, Qurʾānic Exegesis, Principles of Uṣūl, Kalām and Manṭiq, Moulana Rizvi focused his attention towards Islamic philosophy and during the latter part of his studies on Irfān-e-Islāmī. He is currently the resident scholar at Masjid-e-Ali.

Sayed Abbas Razavian grew up in the greater Los Angeles area. He received his bachelor’s degree in business administration from the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California in 2001.

At the age of 21 he moved to Tehran, Iran to study in the Islamic Seminary of Tehran with the late honorable akhlaq(ethics) teacher Ayatullah Mujtahidi.

After the passing of his akhlaq teacher, he moved to Qum to continue his studies in Islamic legal theory and law.

After finishing the sutuh of the hawza(Islamic seminary), he began bahth al-kharij and has been studying kharij for about ten years. Altogether he has studied for about 20 years in the Islamic seminary. He has had English speaking engagements throughout the US. 

Saiyad Nizamuddin Ahmad is currently an Honorary Senior Research Fellow at the Institute of Arabic and Islamic Studies at University of Exeter. He received his MA and PhD in Islamic Studies from Princeton University. He also holds an MA in Arabic from Indiana University and a BSc in Pure Mathematics from Purdue University. He has taught at the University of Texas at Austin, the International Institute of Islamic Thought and Civilization in Kuala Lumpur, the American University of Sharjah, and the American University in Cairo.
Dr. Ahmad’s selected publications include Universal Science: An Introduction to Islamic Metaphysics (2017), Philosophy and the Intellectual Life in Shīʿah Islam (2017), and Fatwās of Condemnation: Islam and the Limits of Dissent (2006). He has presented scholarly papers on a very wide range of subjects at renowned institutions of learning in both the East and West, namely Oxford University, Cambridge University, the Warburg Institute (School of Advanced Study, University of London), the American University of Beirut, Institut Français d’Egypte, and the International Institute of Advanced Islamic Studies, Malaysia.

Sayyid Ali Imran obtained a BCom in Marketing from York University, Toronto in 2010 and went on to work as an Internet Marketer, until he moved to the seminary of Qom in 2012 to pursue his studies. He studied in the seminary until 2021 while also concurrently obtaining a M.A in Islamic Studies from The Islamic College of London in the summer of 2018. He continued his seminary studies in legal theory, jurisprudence and philosophy, eventually attending the advanced kharij of Usul and Fiqh in 2018. Sayyid Ali partook in a wide variety of private & public classes outside of the official seminary curriculum, some of which included classes on epistemology and philosophy, rijal, thematic hadith analysis, hermeneutics, manuscript workshops etc. He publishes much of his own research and as well as translation work on www.IqraOnline.net