Zaytuna College

In 2008, years of patient teaching bore visible fruit.

Zaytuna’s seminary class graduated, marking a milestone in the Institute’s effort to form students rooted in the Islamic scholarly tradition and prepared to serve their communities with knowledge, wisdom, and adab.

It was both a culmination and a beginning: the fruit of the classes, seminars, publications, and community programs that had shaped Zaytuna’s earliest years, and the threshold of an audacious new vision for Muslim higher education in America.

The dream was no longer only to offer programs and gatherings, but to build a college: an institution where sacred knowledge, liberal arts, Arabic, theology, law, and spiritual formation could come together in a serious and holistic education.

The early seeds of Zaytuna were planted by people who believed sacred knowledge could take root in America. Today, you can help that work continue. Join 12000 Strong and stand with Zaytuna for the next 30 years.

Give a monthly gift at zaytuna.edu/30

By 2005, Zaytuna’s pilot seminary program was taking shape, drawing a dedicated cohort of students committed to both the Islamic and Western intellectual traditions.

That year, Shaykh Yahya Rhodus returned to the United States after years of traditional study abroad and joined Zaytuna Institute as a full-time teacher, helping strengthen the emerging seminary program.

These students were willing to devote years of their lives to serious study, trusting that the Islamic tradition had something profound to offer the time and place in which they lived.

Zaytuna also continued serving the wider community through programs such as The Life & Works of Imam Nawawi, Agenda to Change Our Condition, and Evening of Gratitude: Honoring the Contributions of Muslim Women. Spring Quarter courses included The 40 Hadith of Imam Nawawi (Part 2), Aqidah: Treatise of Belief (Aqidah al-Tahawiyya), and The Fiqh of Marriage.

Be part of 12000 Strong. As we celebrate 30 years, help us grow to 12,000 supporters standing with Zaytuna.

Donate today at zaytuna.edu/30.

In 2003, Zaytuna Institute continued to deepen its curriculum, expanding its offerings in classical Arabic, Islamic jurisprudence, theology, and Qur’an.

That year, Imam Zaid Shakir formally joined Zaytuna Institute, teaching subjects as varied as Arabic and fiqh. Students gathered to read the great texts in their original language and to sit, as scholars have for centuries, in the unbroken chain of transmission.

The Fall 2003 course schedule reflected this breadth, with offerings such as “History of the Divine Legislation,” “Discerning the Eye’s Delight: The Life of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him),” “Morning Reflection: Invocations and Aphorisms from the Spiritual Masters,” “Adab of the Student,” and “Shafi‘i Fiqh: Theory and Practice of the Divine Law.”

And with the launch of Seasons, Zaytuna’s semiannual journal, the Institute gave voice to a growing tradition of scholarship, reflection, and renewal.

This was education as the tradition intended it: patient, rigorous, and rooted in love of the Divine.

The early seeds of Zaytuna were planted by people who believed sacred knowledge could take root in the West. Today, you can help that work continue. Join 12000 Strong and stand with Zaytuna for the next 30 years.

Give monthly at zaytuna.edu/30

Through 2002, Zaytuna Institute continued to shape the intellectual and spiritual landscape of American Muslims through its classes, programs, publications, and growing community.

At the Hayward schoolhouse on Jackson Street, Shaykh Hamza Yusuf taught regularly, gathering students around the study of sacred knowledge and the work of spiritual refinement.

The Minara Program nurtured young hearts and minds, helping children grow with love for Islam, learning, and adab.

Zaytuna had become more than a school. It was a place where seekers gathered, families connected, children learned, and a community found a spiritual and intellectual home.

As we celebrate 30 years, help us grow to 12000 supporters standing with Zaytuna and ensuring this work continues for the next generation. Join 12000 Strong with a monthly gift of $30 today at https://www.zaytuna.edu/30.