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University Mosque Serves Campus Muslim Community

This article appeared in the April 1997 issue of The Record, The Official Newspaper of the University of Scranton. 

By William G. Gilroy,
The Record Editor 

When Riaz Hussein, an associate professor of economics/finance, arrived at the University in 1967, he discovered he was probably the only Muslim living in the Scranton area. Finding no place to worship, Hussein had to recite the prayers Muslims are required to perform several times a day in his own apartment. 

Now, Hussein joins a growing number of Muslim students on campus who pray each day in a University-sponsored mosque.  "We are very fortunate, and are grateful to the University, for providing us with a place to get together and worship," Hussein said, "It's a spiritually uplifting experience to have our own mosque on campus." 

The mosque, which opened last spring, is located in a University-owned house on N. Webster Ave. on the edge of the campus.  Roughly 15 Muslim students gather several times a day at the site for group prayer, and Hussein and eight to 10 students gather at 10 p.m. each night, after classes are completed, for evening prayers. 

The mosque came about as a result of the University Graduate School's efforts to serve the needs of its growing Muslim students body. "We have quite a few Muslims in our student population," said James Goonan, director of graduate admissions.  We have students from Malaysia, Turkey, Pakistan, India, the United Arab Emirates, Palestine, Jordan and Saudi Arabia who are Muslims. 

"When we were recruiting these students, we asked them what was important to them. They stressed that, in addition to academic excellence and student services, a location at which to pray together was vital to them. 

Unfortunately, the closest mosque to the University campus was in Wilkes-Barre. "Since it is a religious requirement that we pray each day, we had to gather at someone's apartment just to do prayers," said Tasleem Rasool, a graduate student from Pakistan. "Once a week, usually on Friday, we traveled together to Wilkes- Barre for group prayers." 

Through the urging of Muslim students, Goonan began exploring the feasibility of a mosque on campus. Through the assistance of Rev. Thomas Masterson, S.J., vice president for campus ministries, and Glenn Pellino, a University administrator, the house on N. Webster Ave., which was not being used at the time, was identified and chosen as the site for the mosque. 

The University made changes to the house to make it suitable for worship and the Jesuit community made a sizable donation to purchase prayer rugs and other furnishings for the mosque. 

The establishment of a mosque on campus is a reflection of the growing diversity of the University's, and especially the Graduate School's, student body. "There have been international students at the university since 1949, and we now have 102 from 30 different countries in the Graduate School," said Goonan. "We have been very successful at recruiting students of all backgrounds, from many nations and religious traditions." 

The Graduate School is committed to providing its increasingly diverse student body with essential services. Jay Bazles, the Graduate School's director of International Student Affairs, advises and counsels students to ensure a smooth transition into a new culture and educational system. An English as a Second Language Program is available to international students and Blazes organizes bus trips, an international student dinner and other social events that help the students develop a sense of community. 

The mosque also reflects Campus Ministries' commitment to meeting the spiritual needs of all members of the University community. Masterson indicated that he had been searching for a suitable location for a campus mosque for some time. He noted he was pleased to see that the mosque was heavily used during the recent Muslim holy month of Ramadan. "If we don't take everybody's faith seriously, then we aren't taking our own seriously," he observed. 

The establishment of a mosque on the University's campus is also helping to bring added diversity to the ethnically-rich Scranton area. The growing Muslim population on the University campus has become increasingly active in the local
community. Jabber Zada, a Muslim student from the United Arab Emirates, conducts a ministry program among Muslim inmates at the Lackawanna County Jail. 

The presence of a mosque on campus has already had an impact on the Graduate School's recruiting efforts. Ammar Akkad, a graduate chemistry student who worships at the mosque, notes that his decision to relocate from Philadelphia to Scranton for graduate studies was heavily influenced by the presence of a mosque on campus. Akkad is aware of at least six graduate Muslim students who now plan to attend the University. "The University is taking great steps to make Muslim students aware of the existence of the mosque. This is a wonderful development for our Muslim community and is also very good for the Scranton area," he said. Jabber also noted that a group of Muslim students who had intended to study in Florida will now enroll at the University due to the existence of the mosque. 

For Riaz Hussein, who once prayed alone in his apartment, the mosque is an especially welcome development. "This is a beautiful place and we are very happy to have it," he said. "I can now walk to a mosque from my home and pray two or three times a day."