Attention parents, staff, local congregants of SMA/AEA and fellow supporters:

It has recently come to our attention that the Scarborough Muslim Association Board (led by Br Abdul Hai Patel-President, Br Salman Malik, Br Yusuf Ingar and Br Zakir Patel-TDSB School Trustee among others) has decided to shut down the school (Abu Bakr Education Academy) without the consultation of stakeholders. This is absolutely unacceptable, given that none of the parents, staff members and other community members were consulted in the process. This is an abuse of the board's power to make such an uninformed decision and this bad governance reflects not just badly on the board, but on the wider Muslim community. According to the website, the SMA was established in 1981 as a non-profit charitable organization with the sole purpose of establishing a permanent mosque and an Islamic academic school in Scarborough.

Raising our future generations in a Muslim school where Islamic values are taught is important not just to their success in the Hereafter, but also in this world, especially in the country that we live in.  By making the decision to shut down the school, the Board is responsible for forcing hundreds of Muslim children to attend public schools and is accountable for the erosion of Islamic values and upbringing in those children. 

While the Board's decision to expand Madrasah programs is applauded, the Board cannot choose one specific goal over another, especially when such a choice is deliberately setting up some of these Muslim children for failure by forcing them to attend public school or other avenues of learning. 

Please consider the repercussions of such a choice. You have a duty to not just the Madrasah kids, but also to the broader Muslim community. You have a duty to ensure that every Muslim child that benefits from the mosque and the school is given a chance to succeed and thrive in an environment where they can be amongst peers and learn Islamic values.  

If the rationale of the SMA is because teachers are not getting enough then they should have consulted the teachers first before forcing to shut down the school! The AEA currently has 12 staff and 8 of these staff members are returning from previous years. Only 4 of them are new, and 1 of those 4 is the new support staff which is a position they never had before. Yes the pay is low, but many of our staff are still dedicated to the school. And as for class sizes, we have increased from last year.

We urge you to sign this petition to show the SMA how serious this matter is to our children and to work with them to reconsider their decision on closing the school in September 2022, if Allah swt permits! 

Respectfully,

Fellow AEA Parents & Staff.