Sr. Sana Alhakim is currently the administrator for the Muslim Community Association (MCA), Al Arqam School, and Noor Hifz Academy (NHA). She began working at Al Arqam in 2010 and joined NHA and the MCA in 2015. Her educational background is in Child Development and Management. Tr. Sana completed the Positive Discipline in the Classroom training for teachers in 2019.

Sh. Zakariae ElMekkaoui has been teaching at Noor Hifz Academy since it was founded in 2014. He was born in Morocco and has memorized numerous texts on Ḥadīth, Fiqh, and the Arabic language. He also holds Ijazah for the memorization of both the Warsh-an-Nafi and Hafs-an-Asim recitations of the Holy Quran. He has led Taraweeh prayers during Ramadan since 1998 in Morocco, United Arab Emirates, Sweden, and across the United States. Currently, he is the full-time imam for the South Bay Islamic Association (SBIA) and also leads prayers at the Muslim Community Association (MCA) and Masjid Al-Noor in Santa Clara. Sh. Zakariae completed the Positive Discipline in the Classroom training for teachers in 2019.

Tr. Sahar Ibrahim Khalil has been teaching at Noor Hifz Academy since 2015. She received her bachelor’s degree in sociology from Ain Shams University in Cario, Egypt. She completed her memorization of the Holy Quran in 2013 and received a certificate of completion from Dar-al-Taqwa, affiliated with Al-Azhar University in Egypt. Tr. Sahar has also studied Fiqh, Hadith, and Tafseer. She taught at the Al-Arqam school for four years and at QMC and the Sunday Weekend Islamic School for five years. Tr. Sahar completed the Positive Discipline in the Classroom training for teachers in 2019.

Tr. Mirvat Saadeh has been teaching at Noor Hifz Academy since 2017. She completed her university studies in social studies and then joined one of the Islamic centers back in her native country, Jordan. She finished studying Tajweed and foundational courses in the sciences of Quran from Aqeedah, Fiqh, and Tafseer for three years. Thereafter, she taught children Quran and Tajweed in Islamic centers and institutions and began studying for her Ijazah. In 2012, Tr. Mirvat joined the MCA family as a Quran teacher at Al Arqam School and QMC. She continues to work as a teacher for QMC kindergarten and teaches at other Bay Area schools as well. Tr. Mirvat completed the Positive Discipline in the Classroom training for teachers in 2019.

Sh. Hamza Palya has been teaching at Noor Hifz Academy since 2018. He was raised in San Francisco area and began his religious studies at the Islamic Center of San Francisco. After completing his memorization of the Holy Qurʾān in May 2007, he pursued a formal ʿĀlimiyyah degree, studying under Mufti Abdullah Nana. His ʿālim studies culminated in his traveling to study at the Madresa Arabiya Islamiya in Johannesburg, South Africa. During his student days there, Sh. Hamza was blessed to study under some of the most well-known scholars of South Africa and was granted numerous Ijāzāt (formal authorizations) in various Islamic sciences: Fiqh, Ḥadīth, ʿAqīdah, Tafsīr, Uṣūl, Arabic Grammar and Rhetoric. He serves as the Imam of Masjid Al Haqq in San Mateo, CA and lectures at many mosques across the Bay Area. Sh. Hamza completed the Positive Discipline in the Classroom training for teachers in 2019.

Tr. Hassaan Haq first taught at Noor Hifz Academy from 2019-2020 and then rejoined our staff in 2022. He is a recent graduate from San José State University with a degree in Applied and Computational Mathematics. He was born and raised in the Bay Area and has been attending prayers and events at his local Masaajid since he was a child. Tr. Hassaan completed his Hifdh of the Holy Quran in 2013 with Imam Ilyas Anwar and Mufti Muddassir Oovais in the Irvington Masjid in Fremont, California (ICF), and has been leading Taraweeh prayers during the holy month of Ramadan ever since. Prior to that, he studied part-time Hifdh with Sh. Ebrahim and Sh. Faatina. Tr. Hassaan has a strong passion for volunteer work and enjoys working with the youth and giving back to the local community. He also enjoys playing soccer, traveling, and exploring the various Halal cuisines that the Bay Area has to offer!

Hafidh Saad Mirza joined Noor Hifz Academy in 2023. While growing up in San Francisco, the local masjid, – Islamic Center of San Francisco (ISF) – was always a second home for him, and that is where he developed the passion to memorize the Holy Quran. After completing his memorization of the Holy Quran in 2008 with Molana Yusuf in the hifz program at ISF, Hafidh Saad started leading taraweeh prayers at various local masaajid, with the current one being the Fiji Masjid in South San Francisco. He has also been teaching the recitation of the Holy Quran, various surahs, duas, and Fiqh at the Maktab program in San Francisco to various age groups. He also conducts one-on-one Tajweed sessions for adults. In his free time, he enjoys all things sports: Basketball, football, baseball, soccer, and cricket.