OUR MISSION

Our TEAM

CARLA TAYLOR
Operations Manager/ Khulafa Al-Ard Director

Carla Taylor is a Northern California native, where she received her Bachelors in Health Science from San Jose State University.
Her background and years of experience working in the nonprofit sector has presented her with opportunities to explore ways in which she could use her various skills and passion for humanity, literature, nature, and teaching to create a positive impact on the environment and the next generation that will inherit the earth.  
Carla works on and off with Rabata, a nonprofit organization focused on creating  positive cultural change. She focuses on various writing projects and campaigns designed to inspire women and young girls to become positive change makers, and also assists in writing grants, as well as  teaching in their youth program, called Dragonflies.   
Carla is also an active member of her library and sits on the board as Vice President of Friends of Menifee Library, where she aids in decision  making and assisting in programs for the library. 
As a homeschooling mom of 3, Carla enjoys and values her ability to create engaging and memorable learning experiences with them through outdoor activities and literature. 
Carla takes a holistic approach to education, placing a high importance on fostering personal development and empathy in the youth, which she is excited to bring to AWI. 
In her free time, Carla enjoys writing, reading, gardening, hiking, knitting (all crafts really), and traveling with her family.
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Rania Siddiq
Curricula Wizard
​Expeditions Manager

Rania Siddiq grew up exploring the outdoors and wilderness areas of the American Southwest. She is an educator of ten years, in diverse settings from halaqahs to full-time classroom teaching. She earned a Multiple Subjects Teaching Credential and Master's in Education from Cal Poly Pomona. She also graduated from Al-Huda Institute with a degree in Ta'leem al Quran. She has taken coursework in art education at CSU Fullerton, which inspired her to teach with creativity. She has additionally trained in ecology and field biology for Southern California educators and has attended the Wild Teacher Apprenticeship with AWI, which sparked a deep passion for education through the outdoors. Rania's teaching philosophy is to bring joy to education and help all students achieve their potential as compassionate, global citizens. Rania is passionate about teaching with creativity, art, and nature in all subjects including English language arts, math, science, and social studies. You can find her hooting owl calls in her backyard or figuring out how to bring an ultralight art kit on her next backpacking adventure. ​
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Noreen Khan
​Expansion and Outreach Manager

Noreen Rahman graduated from UC Irvine with a Bachelor’s Degree in Comparative Literature, Minors in Spanish and Criminology, Law and Society, and a Master’s Degree in Demographics and Social Analysis. Noreen also completed state certified trainings for: sexual assault victim advocacy, suicide intervention and prevention, domestic violence victim advocacy, mandated reporting, and reproductive health. She has held various positions in the nonprofit sector since 2004 with organizations such as Girls Inc., Girl Scouts, Islamic Center of Irvine, and UCCE Master Gardeners of Orange County. She currently homeschools two of her three children, serves as a Girls Scouts Troop leader, and provides consulting services for organizational development and expansion.

Suhana Shereef
Administrative Assistant/
​Green Masjid Initiative Manager

Suhana started her journey with the AWI community through her children’s outdoor education classes at AWI. As a family, they slowly started making changes in their daily lives to be more mindful of doing their part to help take care of the environment. The Green Masjid Initiative, launched by AWI in 2022, further deepened her understanding of the importance of environmentalism in Islam. She coordinates outreach efforts to share the Green Masjid Initiative to communities in SoCal and beyond. The persistent outreach efforts of dedicated AWI students and passionate green team members through green deen presentations, informational tables at masjid events, and green reminders on social media have contributed to significant changes in the usage of more environmentally friendly products in local masajid. Suhana is passionate about passing on the knowledge shared by the outstanding teachers and mentors at AWI and all around because education is the key to bringing about the change we need to see for our future generations.


Please visit the Green Masjid Initiative page to learn more about masjid resources on how to get started in your community, starting a native garden, raising awareness, sharing environmental sunnahs, training youth to lead nature walks, our green deen, educational flyers, student resources for green deen presentations and so much more!

T H E   T E A M

Our Founders

Dr. Khadeeja Abdullah

Sama Wareh

Syma Aslam