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EDGE Proposal
Part A:
1.

Title of Project: SUU Muslim Student Association

Part B:
The SUU Muslim Student Association strives to educate individuals of the community
about the Islamic religion and distinguish the diversity of the religion practiced by its followers.
Furthermore, the SUU Muslim Student Association will provide an education and fun
environment for open discussion and help the community be aware of Islamic practices that are
not widely known. The association will also participate in community service and help in
accommodations for Muslim students on the Southern Utah University campus. (157)
Part C:
1. As a Muslim who has lived in the United States my whole life, I have been a part of three
different communities. I have been included in a Islamic, local, and Arab community. As
such, I have noticed that the three communities tend to not communicate and associate
with each other. Since, I have connections in all three communities, I would like to bring
together these three communities and allow them to communicate with one another and
learn about one another. Furthermore, starting a Muslim Student Association will assist
my future career goals by allowing me to get a firsthand experience of being a leader of a
diverse group and gaining skills that will allow me to communicate better with
individuals and bring people together. This will be very valuable in my future career as

either a doctor or an optometrist because of the vast diversity of patients that field is
exposed to.
2. Contrary to stereotypic, and unfortunately, common belief, the Islamic faith incorporates
many cultures and ethnicities from all over the world, not just the Arab culture. The
Islamic religion is a global phenomenon that incorporates a wide variety of clothing,
languages, racial and ethnic minorities, geographic locations, histories, and traditions. As
such, I want to demonstrate that I am global citizen by creating an organization through
Southern Utah University that will help gather all people, not just of the Islamic faith, to
come and communicate with each other in hopes that stereotypes and barriers can be
broken between the communities.
3. The first step of starting a Muslim Student Association on campus is getting the student
body involved and raise awareness that the club is not only for Muslim students, but open
to all individuals willing to learn and help connect the two separated communities.
Afterwards, interfaith panels, discussions, social groups, and activities can be organized
to get the community involved as well. Eventually, I would like to go out to the
community, especially public schools where several Muslim children attend, and explain
to them the simple, but misunderstood, accommodations that the students need. These
accommodations are food restrictions, religious holidays, and especially stereotypes and
how it affects Muslim children attending public schools.
4. In the beginning, the Muslim Student Association would not need much money. As the
association becomes larger, a small budget might be needed to hold large activities and
interfaith panels. Overall, on some occasions like holding community activities during
Islamic holidays as well as informational displays and hosting events, the Muslim
Student Association might need some money. It really depends on the club activities and
events that are planned as the semester goes on.

5. I have lived most of my life between the Islamic culture and the local society. I have seen
the differences and the similarities between the two cultures and noticed the stereotypes
in both communities. I believe that because I have connections and experiences in both
societies, I can help build bridges between the two groups and allow them to break
barriers and overcome stereotypes. I also have experience in communicating between the
Arab culture, Islamic society, and local American culture. I have experience and insight
to how all three groups depict each other which, in a sense, gives me a basis to start with.
Plan B:
My back up plan, if the this project cannot be completed, is to volunteer as an English
tutor as well as volunteer in a hospital in Palestine and gain patient exposure while learning to
communicate with a different culture in a different country. I would also like to volunteer as a
teacher or tutor in the many refugee camps in Palestine and bring back my experiences to share
with the community.