Al-Azhar
Islamic Academy
Founding Year 2024 – 2025
Assalamu 'alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh
All praise is due to Allah: by His mercy and through your generosity, Al-Azhar Islamic Academy completed its founding year. This report shares a clear, honest picture of the funds you entrusted to us and how they were stewarded. Our school keeps its books on a fiscal year running July 1 to June 30 — the natural rhythm of a school. This report covers our founding period: from the day the school's bank account was opened on September 19, 2024 through the close of our first fiscal year on June 30, 2025.
Founding Year at a Glance
from our community
Where the Funds Came From
The community supported the school through four channels. Every dollar shown was deposited into Al-Azhar's business account.
How the Funds Were Used
During the founding year, spending was deliberately disciplined. Funds were held in reserve and deployed only in June 2025 to prepare the school for opening. Total spent: $14,327.
Founding Year Timeline
The school's bank account is officially opened with an initial deposit of $100. The founding year begins.
An anonymous family hosts a kabob dinner at their personal expense to introduce Al-Azhar Islamic Academy to community leaders and supporters across Fresno — the first seeds planted in community soil.
Donations flow through multiple channels: cash and checks at the bank, online giving via Stripe, and direct Zelle and wire transfers. Every gift — from $10 to several thousand dollars — mattered.
A major fundraiser at Omnia Venue, Fresno during the blessed month of Ramadan. The anonymous family covers all event costs (~$10,000 in-kind). 100% of all proceeds go directly to the school's operating account. Ramadan donations further strengthen giving.
With the school year approaching, deliberate spending begins. A major purchase from Lakeshore Learning equips every classroom. Mega-Prints produces outreach materials. Lamps Plus lights the school building.
The founding year ends with $62,799 in the bank — a strong financial foundation ready for the school's first year of students, teachers, and classrooms, in shaa' Allah.
How You Can Continue to Help
Al-Azhar Islamic Academy was made possible by the generosity of this community, and its future depends on your continued support.
Monthly Recurring Donations
Help the school plan with confidence and stability. A consistent monthly gift — even a small one — is more powerful than a one-time contribution.
Tree of Generosity Sponsorships
Be permanently honored at the school's entrance, and become a continuing source of charity for the family member you wish to remember — sadaqah jariyah that outlasts us all.
Sponsor a Student
Help extend our reach to families who need financial assistance, ensuring that Islamic education is accessible to every child in our community.
Zakat & Sadaqah Jariyah
Investments in Islamic education are a continuing charity — a benefit that grows with every child who learns at Al-Azhar. Our school is Zakat eligible.
Volunteer Your Time
Attend our fundraisers, share our story with friends and family, and remember the school and its students in your du'a.
Looking Ahead — 2025–2026 School Year
The 2025–2026 school year — our first year of operation with students enrolled in classrooms — will be reported separately. That report will share with you the full picture of our first year of teaching: enrollment, the broader range of programs and supports we have put in place, and how the funds raised during this expanded second year were stewarded. We look forward to sharing that journey with you, in shaa' Allah.
Help Build the Future of
Islamic Education
Support a mission that nurtures faith, knowledge, leadership, and community impact for generations to come.
"Our Lord, accept this from us. Indeed, You are the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing."
— Surah Al-Baqarah, Verse 127