Professor Ali Asani tells the Alwaleed Program team about his scholarly trajectory, beginning with his experiences coming to Harvard College as an international student from Kenya and entering Islamic studies as an Ismaili student in the early 1970s. He also discusses the importance of expanding perspectives in Islamic studies to include different interpretations of Islam, his interest in studying Islam as a living tradition in the lives of ordinary believers, especially through the arts, and his commitment to education beyond the walls of the university. 

In the 2019-20 academic year, the Alwaleed Program expanded its work of promoting scholarship through the Alwaleed Bin Talal Seminar in Islamic Studies, Research Methods Workshop, Early-Career Faculty Grants, and the Alwaleed Bin Talal Prize for Best Undergraduate Thesis in Islamic Studies to include a prize for Best Dissertation in Islamic Studies. The Program also smoothly adapted to remote learning in the COVID-19 pandemic by hosting two events on the history of infectious diseases in the Muslim world in spring 2020. Read about these and other highlights from our recent work! 

In this first episode in a four-part series, former Alwaleed Program directors, Professors Roy Mottahedeh, William Graham, and Ali Asani, share reflections on the development of Islamic studies over the course of their careers, first as students and then as faculty at... Read more about Ep. 2 | Looking Back on Islamic Studies at Harvard | Roy Mottahedeh, William Graham, and Ali Asani