HIU Bolsters Islamic Studies Faculty with 2 New Hires

Hartford International University for Religion and Peace is excited to announce the addition of two new faculty members who will join other top scholars contributing to HIU’s historic excellence in the fields of Islamic Studies, Christian-Muslim relations, and chaplaincy.

One of HIU’s new hires is Dr. Jawad Anwar Qureshi, most recently Director of Graduate Studies and Administration at Zaytuna College in California, who will serve as Associate Professor of Islamic Studies. Dr. Qureshi has expertise as a scholar of Islamic Studies and as a specialist in Religious Studies Theory and Method. He will begin as a full-time faculty member on July 1, 2026.

Dr. Qureshi will also co-direct the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations.

“I am excited that the Macdonald Center once again have co-directors – one Muslim and one Christian,” said Dr. David D. Grafton, the other Macdonald Center Co-Director. “This is an important symbol of our longstanding commitment to interreligious study and relations at the Center and HIU.”

Also joining the faculty is Chaplain Osman Simsek, who will be a senior instructor. Chaplain Simsek is Director of Muslim Life at Trinity College in Hartford and has 40 years of combined expertise in Islamic Science and professional chaplaincy work. He will also begin on July 1.

The Macdonald Center for Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations already has an outstanding faculty and staff, which includes:

• Dr. Bilal Ansari, Associate Professor of Muslim Chaplaincy and Co-Director of the MA in Chaplaincy
• Dr. David D. Grafton, Professor of Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim Relations and Co-Director of the Macdonald Center
• Dr. Hossein Kamaly, Professor of Islamic Studies and Interreligious Studies; Holder of the Imam Ali Chair in Shi’a Studies and Dialogue Among Islamic Schools of Thought
• Dr. Suheil Laher, Faculty Associate in Qur’anic Studies
• Dr. Lucinda Mosher, Professor of Interreligious Studies and Director of the MA in Interreligious Studies
• Nick Mumejian, Acting Managing Editor of The Muslim World

HIU has a long history of scholarship in Islamic Studies and Christian-Muslim relations, dating back to the late 19th century when a Scottish Presbyterian minister named Duncan Black Macdonald began teaching at then Hartford Theological Seminary. Though Macdonald trained missionaries to work in other countries, he also taught Arabic and said he wanted “to understand Islam from the inside.”

In 1973, HIU launched the Macdonald Center for the Study of Islam and Christian-Muslim Relations, the oldest such center of its kind. The Macdonald Center’s faculty lead the way in creating understanding between and among faiths. They also help set the courses for HIU’s MA and Ph.D. programs and produce The Muslim World journal.

These new hires will keep HIU at the forefront of interreligious studies and provide academic grounding in Islamic Studies for students who specialize in that area.

Dr. Jawad Anwar Qureshi 

Dr. Qureshi holds a Ph.D. in Islamic Studies from The University of Chicago Divinity School, an MA in Religion from University of George-Athens, and a BA in Religious Studies from the University of Missouri – Columbia.

He has held several positions at Zaytuna College, including Director of Graduate Studies and Administration. He is also a visiting scholar at University of California-Berkeley. He has published a number of monographs, book chapters, book reviews, and encyclopedia entries. 

Dr. Qureshi is thrilled to be joining the faculty at HIU and looks forward to working with its students.

“Mentorship is center to my vocation as a scholar,” he said in his letter of application. “I was fortunate to have had exceptional mentors, and I aspire to continue in their footsteps with my own students.”

Chaplain Osman Simsek

Chaplain Simsek, who graduated from HIU with an MA in Chaplaincy in 2024, has a BA in Theology from Dokuz Eylul University in Turkey. He can communicate in four languages: Turkish, Ottoman, Arabic, and English.

He has more than 20 years of chaplaincy experience, including leading the Muslim Life program at Trinity College, where he provides spiritual care, religious services, and educational programming for Muslim students, faculty and staff. He also develops interfaith events and coordinates major religious and cultural events.

Chaplain Simsek is the author of six books, including as editor of the Broken Jug Series – Sermons of Fethullah Gülen.

“My teaching approach is informed by my lived experience and academic training,” he said. “I strive to balance rigorous theological insight with compassionate presence and intercultural sensitivity.”

Welcome, Jawad and Osman!