Professor of Religion

Dr. Khaleel Mohammed was born in Guyana, South America, and his academic pursuits have taken him to such places as Mexico, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Syria and Yemen. He has studied at both traditional Islamic institutions and Western universities.

Dr. Khaleel Mohammed is a professor of Religion at San Diego State University, and a core faculty member of the university's Center for Islamic and Arabic Studies.

Dr. Mohammed was born in Guyana, South America, and is now a citizen of Canada. He has studied in Mexico, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Mauritania, Syria and Yemen, at both traditional Islamic institutions and Western universities.

After a bachelor's degree in Religion and Psychology (Mexico), and a brief stint in the Canadian Army, he received a Saudi government scholarship and studied at the Kulliyat al-Shariah, Muhammad bin Saud University, in Riyadh.

Upon his return to Canada, he received numerous fellowships and awards, completing an M.A. in religion (majoring in Judaism and Islam, Concordia University), and then his Ph.D. (Islamic law) at McGill, with an FCAR (Fonds pour les chercheurs et aide a la recherché) fellowship from the Government of Quebec.

He was the first Kraft-Hiatt postdoctoral fellow in Islamic Studies at Brandeis University and during his two-year fellowship there, researched the image of the Jew in the Hadith Literature.

Dr. Mohammed is an imam and one of the few Islamic scholars who is accepted by both the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam. Dr. Mohammed has published a book (The World of Our Youth), numerous journal articles, and has presented at several conferences and public forums. He has also served as consultant to the Department of Justice, Government of Quebec, Canada, and as an expert witness in San Diego.

He is a speaker with the United Jewish Communities (UJC) and the Brandeis University National Women's Committee (BUNWC).

Dr. Mohammed also led the Daniel Pearl Memorial in 2003 in Cambridge Square, Boston. Before his departure from Brandeis, he delivered the Chaplaincy sponsored graduation commencement address for the class of 2003. In addition to having lectured at several synagogues, churches and mosques, he has delivered speeches at many universities, including: McGill, Dartmouth College, Concordia (Montreal), University of Damascus, Muhammad b. Saud University (Saudi Arabia), Clark, Hebrew College, University of Judaism, Brandeis, Rollins College and Harvard.

He is Islamic law specialist, and his responsa material can be found at http://www.forpeoplewhothink.org/ .

From: cal.sdsu.edu

Related Articles:
The dissenting Muslim (San Diego Jewish Journal)

Assessing English Translations of the Qur'an (The Middle East Forum)