YOUTH DEVELOPMENT
Confident. Connected. Character-driven. At Youth Development, we envision a world where every Muslim youth feels a sense of belonging to their community and a strong connection to their faith. We believe that young people are not just the next generation of contributors, but that they have the potential to lead and make a difference right now when provided with supportive environments and empowering mentorship.
Youth Development combines city-wide social events with local small-group circles for middle and high schoolers. Our events are carefully curated to be inclusive, active, and relevant, while the small groups, led by knowledgeable youth mentors, focus on creating intimate, safe spaces for faith-based conversations on real-world challenges. This research-backed positive youth development model offers a holistic pathway for youth to learn and grow in thoughtful, intentional ways.
MEET THE YOUTH DEVELOPMENT TEAM
Zubair Zafar
Zubair Zafar, originally from Panama City, FL, studied economics and English at the University of Florida. Realizing that the corporate rat race was not his calling, he moved to Dallas, TX to study Arabic and Islamic studies at Bayyinah Institute and Qalam Institute, respectively. Upon completing his education and working as a teacher in one of the largest Islamic schools in America, Zubair moved to Atlanta to join the Roswell Community Masjid as their first full-time Executive Director. After serving in that capacity for 3 years, he worked at ISNA and Intuitive Solutions in the non-profit space. Since then, he has received his MBA from Emory University in strategic leadership and non-profit management and is now working on a Graduate Certificate in Philanthropic Studies.
One Ummah is the fulfillment of Zubair’s lifelong dream to help empower a generation of
Sahaba-like Muslims: certain in faith, confident in identity, united in action.
Sameera Omar
Sameera Omar is an Atlanta native who is currently studying psychology at Georgia Tech. There, her experience working with various tech start-ups fueled her passion for community-building and organizational development. After briefly studying at Bayyinah in Texas, she spent several years working with nonprofit organizations like MIST, LaunchGood, and RCM, all of which helped to refine her understanding of effective teamwork and how to create high quality experiences.
For the last four years, Sameera has been working at a public charter school to connect parents of at-risk students with resources and support. She loves working with youth and has been teaching high school girls in Gwinnett since 2012. She loves hiking, traveling, burritos, tennis, and curling up to a solid book.
Yusuf Khan
Yusuf Khan has been an active member of the greater Atlanta Muslim community for over 10 years. He has served as a Sunday school teacher, a youth group leader, a private Quran/Islam tutor, and as an interim imam in the metro Atlanta area. Yusuf’s passion lies in studying the Sunnah of our Prophet ﷺ and his companions and determining how to apply their wisdom in today’s day and age so as to benefit the Muslim community at large.
Working alongside One Ummah, Yusuf plans to build curriculum that allows youth mentors to better support the young people of our community and help solidify their Muslim identity! In his spare time, Yusuf enjoys playing video games, tennis, trying new foods, and working out.
EVENT PHOTOS
