Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TIZA) was a K-8 school in Inver Grove Heights, Minnesota named after Tarek ibn Ziyad, the Muslim general of medieval Morocco who entered Gibraltar in 711 CE on behalf of the Umayyad Caliphate and defeated the Visigoths. The school was sponsored by Islamic Relief USA.Muehlhausen, Nicole (April 11, 2008), "Charter school makes changes after Islamic accusation" , KSTP-TV The school had a primarily Muslim student body and has been embroiled in a number of controversies regarding the separation of church and state. The school had a waiting list of 1,500 students.Kersten, Katherine (March 9, 2008), "March 9: Are taxpayers footing bill for Islamic school in Minnesota?", Star Tribune Around 80% of students were English language learners. Despite this, the school had one of the highest reading scores on standardized tests in the state.McCallum, Laura (May 13, 2007), "Twin Cities charter school boosts reading scores for English language learners", Minnesota Public Radio As of July 2011 TiZA was shut down by order of the Minnesota Education Department, due to lack of an approved charter school sponsor.Weber, Thomas (July 5, 2011), "TiZA ponders legal options after state moves to shut down school", Minnesota Public Radio
Founding Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy opened in the fall of 2003 for the 2003–2004 school year. The school was founded by its current principal, Asad Zaman and Hesham Hussein, both local imams and leaders of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota (MAS-MN). The school opened with an enrollment of 215 students in grades K-5. The school was very popular and had 765 applicants in the first year.
Students As of the 2006–2007 school year, 302 students attended TIZA. The majority were Black (83%), with Asian (14%) and White (2%) being the other major ethnic groups. Seventy-seven percent of students qualify for Free and Reduced Price Lunch, an indicator of poverty, and the majority (81%) have had limited English proficiency. Four percent of students qualify for special education. The school's math proficiency was 23 percentage points higher than the state average and the school's reading proficiency was 3 percentage points higher than the state average, at 67 percent. Principal Asad Zaman estimates that 80 to 90 percent of students are Muslim.Lemagie, Sarah (May 20, 2008), "State orders charter school to correct 2 areas tied to Islam" Star Tribune
Curriculum The school's curriculum focused on historical civilizations in Africa, Asia and the Middle East, and taught the Arabic language in addition to English. The school curriculum placed an emphasis on the Arabic language.Popper, Nathanial (August 31, 2007), "Chartering a New Course", The Wall Street Journal After the school day ended, several optional extracurricular activities were offered. The teaching of Islamic studies after school generated controversy. The Muslim American Society of Minnesota (MAS-MN), which shared the building with TIZA, offered the classes.Jett, Beth (April 12, 2008), "JETT: TIZA Academy -- some extras that didn't make the stories we aired", KSTP-TV
Lawsuit In January, 2009, describing the Academy as "in essence, a private religious school", Charles Samuelson, executive director of the Minnesota ACLU, announced that the ACLU would file a lawsuit alleging that the Academy promotes the Muslim religion and that its directors illegally use a holding company to channel taxpayer dollars to a religious organization."ACLU To Sue Charter School In Twin Cities", Randy Furst and Sarah Lemagie, The Minneapolis Star Tribune, January 21, 2009"ACLU to Sue TiZA, State Ed Department for Promoting Religion [on Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy]" by Megan Boldt, The Pioneer Press (TwinCities.com), January 21, 2009 "ACLU Sues Charter School Over Religion" , Associated Press, January 21, 2009 The suit accuses the school of holding group prayers during school hours, including a 30-minute prayer session on Fridays, allowing teachers to post religious material on classroom bulletin boards, and enforcing Islamic rules on modesty of dress – including sleeves and skirts or trousers of a certain length, on female but not male students and teachers.
The lawsuit also named the Minnesota Department of Education and Islamic Relief, the charter school's authorizer, as co-defendants.ACLU-MN vs. TiZA et al., complaint A settlement reached in February 2011 between the ACLU and the other defendants included an agreement that Islamic Relief would not to seek to incorporate in Minnesota; under a new state law, this effectively means the out-of-state organization may no longer continue serving as TiZA's authorizer."ACLU settles with state, school sponsor", The Minneapolis Star Tribune, February 7, 2011 After the school closed operations on June 30, 2011, the ACLU reached a settlement with TIZA and the individual defendants.
Controversy Star Tribune columnist Katherine Kersten spurred an inquiry into TiZA by the Minnesota Department of Education after her column suggested the school had violated the Establishment Clause of the First Amendment to the United States Constitution by teaching religion in the schools. The accusation was made by Republican Party activist Amanda Getz, who closely collaborated with Katherine Kersten as part of her ongoing efforts to close down the school."Education Department findings on Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy contradict published reports" Minnesota Monitor May 20, 2008
The Department of Education found that the school had violated some lesser statutes, involving seat time and busing as well as holding prayer services on school grounds, but that it was not teaching Islam to students."State dispels suspicions charter school teaches Islam" Pioneer Press May 20, 2008
When a news crew from KSTP-TV entered the school grounds to ask for a comment about the MDoE findings, school director Asad Zaman and another school official grabbed the crew's camera. Police were already in the area at the time of the incident. No charges against KSTP (for trespassing) or the school officials (for assault) were pursued.KSTP reports "Inver Grove Heights police won't charge a Channel 5 news crew, or Tarik ibn Zayad Academy leaders" MinnPost July 1, 2008
Asad Zaman claims that the school has received threatening telephone and e-mail messages after a newspaper journalist questioned whether the school promotes Islam. CAIR, an Islamic advocacy group, has filed a complaint with police. Authorities were investigating the messages as possible hate crimes as of April 2008."Muslim group asks for inquiry on alleged threats against school"
See also Free Exercise Clause of the First Amendment Separation of church and state in the United States Faith-based initiatives Board of Education of Kiryas Joel Village School District v. Grumet Khalil Gibran International Academy Ethnic-culture based charter school
References
Birkey, Andy (May 2008), "Education Department findings on Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy contradict published reports" Minnesota Monitor Featherly, Kevin (March 2007), "Brothers' Keeper", Minnesota Monthly Kersten, Katherine (April 9, 2008), "Wednesday: Wall of silence broken at state's Muslim public school", Star Tribune Kersten, Katherine (April 8, 2008), "E-mail exchange with TIZA's executive director", Star Tribune
External links Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy official site (archived August 26, 2011) Bright Spot in Charter-school Report: Tarek Academy