Over twenty scholars from different disciplines ranging from religious studies to history to law, science and literature participated in the two weeks event that started on July 27 and ended on August 7th, 2009. The scholars who presented papers or delivered lectures included:
- Charles Butterworth, Professor Emeritus, University of Maryland.
Lecture on “Law and the Common Good: To Bring about a Virtuous City or Preserve the Old Order?”
- Mahmoud Ayoub, Professor Emeritus of Religion, Temple University. Professor of Islamic Studies and Christian Muslim Relations, The Hartford Seminary.
Lecture on “The Place of Qur’an and Sunna in Muslim Life”
- Khaleel Mohammad, Associate Professor, Dept of Religious Studies, San Diego State University
Paper on “The Concept of Isma in Qur’an with a focus on Shia Interpretations”
- Cemil Ayden, IIIT Chair, Associate Professor of History, George Mason University.
Lecture on “ The Development of Political Thought during the Ottoman Empire”.
- Jasser Auda, PhD, Director of the Center for the Study of Maqasid, London, UK.
Paper on “Maqasid al Sharia and the Methodology of Understanding the Scripts”
Lecture on “ Maqasid Application to Finance”
- Rumee Ahmad, Assistant Professor, Colgate University
Paper on “Nazm al-Qur’an”
- Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad, PhD, Adjunct Professor, University of Maryland.
Paper on “On Natural Law and the Sharia”
- Fahd Tayyab, Kings College, London, UK
Paper on “A Philosophical Approach Towards Understanding Qur’an, Science and Religion”
- Ahmad Sadri, Associate Professor of Sociology, Lake Forest College.
Lecture on “The Sociology of Development of Shia Thought in Contemporary Iran”
- Assad Busool, Professor of Arabic and Islamic Studies, Islamic College, Chicago.
Paper on “Women’s Role in Public Life: Review of References in Qur’an and Sunna”
- Riri Khariroh, PhD Candidate, Ohio State University
Paper on “Islamic Feminism in Indonesia: The Quest for Reinterpretation of Qur’an and Sunna”
- Ayesha Chaudary, Assistant Professor, Colgate University
Paper on “The Divinely Ordered Social Hierarchy of Marriage”
- Juliana Hammer, Assistant Professor, George Mason University
Lecture on “American Muslim Women’s Interpretations of the Qur’an”
- Muhammad Mokhtar Ahmed, Assistant Professor, International Islamic, University, Chittagong, Dhaka, Bengladesh. (in absentia)
- Leyla Ozgur, PhD candidate, UCLA
Paper on “Qur’anic Stories: Examples of a Literary Approach to Qu’ranic Stories”
Other participants in the program included:
- Robert Crane, PhD, Harvard University, Independent Scholar and expert on law, economics and international relations.
- Zahid Bukhari, Georgetown University
- Imtiyaz Yousif, Visiting Scholar, Georgetown University
The program included a session dedicated to “Reflections on the status and future of Islamic Studies in American Universities”. The focus of the discussion, presented by Dr. Abubaker Al-Shingieti and D. Zahid Bukhari, was the final report and recommendations of the Center of Islam and Public Policy (CIPP) which was commissioned by IIIT to conduct a comprehensive study on the status of Islamic Studies in American Universities.
Also included were social events that brought together the scholars participating in the Summer Institute together with IIIT staff and their families and the students participating in IIIT Summer program for graduate and undergraduate students.
IIIT is planning to publish the papers presented during the program in an edited volume later this year