Dean of Student Culture & Community Standards at Islamic Foundation – Villa Park, Illinois

Role Overview

The Dean of Student Culture & Community Standards serves as the steward of student life, character formation, and restorative growth at IFS. This role is responsible for cultivating a school culture rooted in adab, responsibility, accountability, and mutual

respect, ensuring that discipline functions as a means of tarbiyah/ta’deeb and personal development, not merely correction.

The Dean operates as a lead mentor and strategist, providing vision, guidance, and oversight for student culture while working collaboratively with Department Heads, Grade-Level Leads, the IFS Leadership Team, THIQA scholars, and teaching staff. The

role balances relational presence with strategic insight, ensuring coherence between Islamic values, student well-being, and institutional systems. All Islamic, spiritual, and ethical matters related to this role are carried out in consultation with and under the guidance of Shaykh Haroon Ahmed, Resident Scholar and Academy Supervisor.

Job Responsibilities

• Set, steward, and model the overall tone and moral ethos of student life across all campus spaces, including classrooms, common areas, and the Masjid.
• Serve as a primary mentor for students requiring sustained guidance in character, behavior, or personal development.
• Promote internalized discipline grounded in adab, self-regulation, accountability, and respect for others.
• Maintain a visible and relational presence among students, particularly in moments that shape culture and norms.
• Partner with Department Heads and Grade-Level Leads to reinforce expectations consistently.
• Support teachers with guidance and counsel on culture-building practices without assuming classroom management responsibilities.
• Design, oversee, and uphold the school’s restorative justice framework, ensuring that responses to misconduct prioritize growth, responsibility, repair, and reintegration.
• Personally lead high-impact, sensitive, or recurring cases involving student conflict or serious behavioral concerns.
• Ensure that disciplinary measures align with fairness, proportionality, and developmental appropriateness.
• Equip Grade-Level Leads and staff with restorative tools and approaches.
• Work alongside counselors, Department Heads, and the IFS Leadership Team when cases involve emotional health, family dynamics, or safety considerations.
• Review behavioral and attendance data at a strategic level to identify patterns, recurring concerns, and systemic gaps.
• Use insights from data to recommend preventive strategies, policy adjustments, or targeted interventions.
• Routine documentation, data entry, and daily monitoring are handled by appropriate administrative staff.
• Coordinate with Department Heads and Grade-Level Leads to ensure consistent documentation and follow-through.
• Participate in identifying students experiencing chronic absenteeism or disengagement.
• Provide pastoral insight and strategic guidance in complex cases where trust, motivation, or family dynamics are central.
• Daily attendance tracking and enforcement remain with designated staff and administrators.
• Family engagement is prioritized for cases requiring moral counsel, mediation, or relationship repair rather than routine matters.
• Serve as a student-centered advocate within leadership discussions, ensuring that student developmental needs and religious considerations are represented.
• Participate in safety planning, crisis protocols, and policy discussions as part of the IFS Leadership Team, when required.
• Support institutional decision-making through insight and counsel without replacing administrative authority.
• Work closely with THIQA scholars and teachers to ensure alignment between student conduct, moral formation, and Islamic educational goals.
• Take religious counsel and direction from Shaykh Haroon Ahmed in all Islamicrelated matters, including: ethical considerations, disciplinary philosophy, spiritual guidance, and complex cases requiring Islamic judgment or wisdom.
• Ensure that restorative practices and behavioral expectations reflect Islamic principles of ?adl, ra?mah, amanah, and i?la?.

• Graduate training in Islamic studies, divinity, pastoral care, education, counseling, or a related field is strongly preferred.
• Training or experience in restorative justice, mediation, or pastoral counseling is highly valued.
• Demonstrated experience working with youth or young adults in mentorship focused environments (schools, universities, community organizations, chaplaincy, etc.).
• Ability to engage diverse families and student backgrounds with wisdom and cultural sensitivity.
• Calm, fair, and grounded under pressure
• Relationally strong with students while maintaining appropriate authority
• Committed to growth-oriented discipline and moral formation
• Able to work collaboratively within a leadership team and accept scholarly counsel

The Dean of Student Culture & Community Standards serves as the school’s moral and

relational compass. While teachers deliver the curriculum and leadership sets institutional

direction, this role ensures that students develop the internal character, discipline, and

ethical grounding necessary to navigate their educational journey with integrity and

resilience