2022 — Student list — Middle East Institute

Omar Gebril

Omar is originally from Giza, Egypt. He is an MA candidate in Islamic Studies at Columbia University, having joined as a recipient of the Fulbright scholarship. Omar completed his undergraduate degree in Islamic Studies at Al-Azhar University in Cairo. Following his graduation, he worked as a researcher at Egypt’s Dar Al-Ifta. His academic interests include Islamic legal history, the anthropology of Islamic law, uṣūl al-fiqh, legal reform in Egypt, state and religious institutions, and Islamic political theory.

ISMAAstrid BenedekAugust 21, 20232022

Natasha Shahid

Natasha Shahid was born and raised in Pakistan, where she earned an MA in History with distinction and an MPhil in Asian Studies. She would like to describe herself as a historian of the medieval Middle East, along with her native South Asia, and her primary area of focus as the history of the early Nizārī Ismā'īlis - also known as the 'Order of the Assassins' - on which she has produced one thesis, an academic paper, as well as several newspaper features, so far. Natasha also has several years of teaching experience, along with a decade in journalism in which she wrote, edited, researched, and published extensively.

At Columbia MEI, she has continued to explore the history of the early Nizārī Ismā'īlis, working with the famed Ilkhānid historical compilations, the Jāmi' al-Tawārīkh and the Zubdat al-Tawārīkh for her Islamic Studies MA thesis. Apart from these valuable texts, she is also exploring the material culture of the Nizārī Ismā'īlīs of Alamūt, with hopes of enhancing our understanding of this thus far largely misunderstood polity.

In addition to her primary area of interest, Natasha is also interested in Quranic hermeneutics, the place of outer space in Islamic scripture, and - being a mom of two - the ethics of parenting in Islam. She welcomes all interaction and discussion on these topics, and can be reached at her academia.edu profile, here.

ISMAAstrid BenedekAugust 21, 20232022

Mary Beth Thomas

ISMAAstrid BenedekAugust 21, 20232022

Amal S Ismail-Ladak

Dual Degree, At AKUAstrid BenedekAugust 21, 20232022

Elizabeth Hazelton

Elizabeth Hazelton graduated from Baylor University in Waco, Texas with majors in International Studies, Arabic and Middle East Studies. During her undergraduate studies she interned with the U.S. Department of State with the Yemen Affairs Unit and Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs. Her research interests include women, gender and sexuality in Saudi Arabia.

ISMAIsabel de KatonaAugust 13, 20222022

Mohammed Bilal Khan

Bilal currently serves as an interventionist and research assistant at TC’s Center for Cerebral Palsy Research. He received a Bachelor of Science from NYIT, and most recently completed his Master’s in Clinical Psychology from Teachers College, Columbia University. He is now pursuing further graduate studies at Columbia University, with the intention to obtain a PhD and cater towards adolescent Muslim populations as an aspiring clinician. His current interests focus on acquiring a cultural background of Islam, offering culturally-competent modes of care, and analyzing the ancient conflict between religious practices and cultural innovations. In his space time, he likes to hop around bookstores, dabble in fashion, gauge the best oat milk-to-cold brew ratio, and observe a daily ritual of walking at least five miles a day.’

ISMAIsabel de KatonaAugust 11, 20222022

Mahe-Noor Baig

Mahe-Noor Baig is a student in the Islamic Studies MA program at Columbia University. Born and raised in Queens, she holds a Juris Doctorate from the Maurice A. Deane School of Law at Hofstra University. As a first generation Pakistani-American female attorney, her primary research interests are in Sharia law and Islamic jurisprudence, women's rights under Sharia law, and how different cultures and societies have shaped women's rights using Islamic law.

ISMAIsabel de KatonaAugust 7, 20222022

Sofia Leathers

Sofie Leathers, from Delray Beach, Florida, is pursuing a career in Arabic language education with a research focus in Islamic science and philosophy. She is an MA candidate for the Columbia/Aga Khan dual degree in Islamic Studies and Muslim Cultures. In her undergraduate thesis at Middlebury College, Sofie produced an original translation of a sample of a 10th-century, occult-scientific agronomical text. In her current position as a scholar-intern at Roots Academy in Rabat, Sofie designs educational programming, including a Sufism-themed trip around Morocco and a workshop series on higher education in the U.S. For two years, she has facilitated virtual English classes for students in rural Morocco with Yallah Al-Quds, an English-Arabic linguistic and cultural exchange platform she helped launch.

Dual Degree, At AKUIsabel de KatonaJuly 14, 20222022

Muhammed Khaleel

Muhammed Khaleel, from Calicut, South India, is an MA candidate for the Columbia/Aga Khan dual degree in Islamic Studies and Muslim Cultures. He holds a BA in Arabic Language and Literature from the University of Calicut. He has also completed an undergraduate degree in Islamic Studies from Jamia Madeenathunnoor, Calicut, where he was trained in the Shāfi’ī and Asha’rī Islamic texts. He has also worked as a research assistant at Malaibar Foundation for Research and Development, Calicut, where he gained hands-on experience in Muslim manuscripts from Malabar, further deepening his knowledge and expertise in the field. His areas of interest include Occult sciences, Manuscript cultures, history of science, food history, and Cultural Anthropology.

Dual Degree, At AKUIsabel de KatonaJuly 10, 20222022