Scholarly Governance · Princeton PhD · Al-Azhar Formed
The Curriculum Governed by Al-Azhar and Princeton Scholars
Every unit of FISLI curriculum is governed by a scholarly board that includes Princeton PhD and al-Azhar trained scholars. Not as consultants. As governors. There is a difference.
The Question Every Administrator Asks
"Is this theologically sound?" Every Muslim school administrator, every mosque board member, every parent who has ever reviewed curriculum for their children has asked some version of this question. The answer most curriculum publishers give is a description of their process. The answer FISLI gives is a governance structure you can audit.
FISLI operates under the governance of a scholarly board that includes Princeton PhD and al-Azhar trained scholars in the classical Sunni traditions. The board does not review content after the fact. It governs the theological compliance framework before a single unit is written, reviews every unit before it ships, and endorses every Tier 2 and Tier 3 teacher credential issued under the FISLI name.
The Fiscal Sponsor and Academic Council Chair
The Foundations Press is fiscally sponsored by Bayt al-Fatwa 501(c)(3). The Academic Council Chair is Shaykh Dr. Tarek Elgawhary.
Shaykh Tarek holds a doctorate in Islamic Law from Princeton University and completed his traditional seminary formation at al-Azhar in Cairo. He is one of the very few scholars in the West who carries both the academic credentials of a research university and the transmitted formation of the classical Islamic seminary. He is the resident scholar at the Islamic Community Center of Potomac (ICCP), the founder of the Making Sense of Islam platform, and the CEO of the Coexist Foundation.
As fiscal sponsor and Academic Council Chair, Shaykh Tarek brings the institutional authority, scholarly depth, and community trust that a curriculum in the classical Islamic sciences requires at every level.
The Four-Gate Theological Audit
No FISLI unit ships without passing all four gates. This is not a best-effort review. It is a non-negotiable quality standard.
Gate 1 — Voice and Register
Editorial standards for tone, register, and academic voice throughout all student and teacher content. Nothing ships in a register that misrepresents the tradition.
Gate 2 — Source Authentication
Every biographical date, place, and count verified against original classical sources. No unverified claims. A claim without a verified classical source is not in FISLI curriculum.
Gate 3 — Theological Review
Every unit reviewed against the Curriculum Governance Framework by the human scholarly board. Gate 3 is never delegated to AI. This is the board's exclusive domain.
Gate 4 — Visual QA
Every unit rendered to PDF and reviewed page-by-page. What students receive looks like what scholars produced.
The Theological Tradition
FISLI represents the classical Sunni scholarly consensus of Ahl al-Sunnah, honoring all four madhabs equally, with the scholarly ethical tradition integral to Islamic formation. The seven theological compliance rules governing every unit are available upon request.
The source hierarchy: Tier One — Azhar primary sources, cited freely. Tier Two — authoritative sources, used with scholarly context. Tier Three — reference sources, cited for context only, not as primary authority. Every student who completes FISLI knows not just what the tradition says but where the claim comes from and how it was transmitted.
Responsible AI in Sacred Content Production
FISLI uses Claude (Anthropic) as a production tool in three of four gates. Gate 3 — theological compliance — is governed entirely by the human scholarly board. This governance model has been published publicly as a framework for responsible AI use in sacred content production. It is the governance model that answers the question every administrator needs to answer: "Can I tell my board this curriculum was reviewed by qualified scholars?" The answer is yes. Here is the documentation.
Request Governance Documentation
Full governance framework documentation, theological compliance rules, and scholarly board credentials available to serious institutional inquiries.
Contact The Foundations PressFrequently Asked Questions
Who are the scholars governing FISLI?
Princeton PhD and al-Azhar trained scholars. The Academic Council Chair is Shaykh Dr. Tarek Elgawhary — Princeton doctorate in Islamic Law, al-Azhar seminary formation, resident scholar at ICCP, founder of Making Sense of Islam.
What is the four-gate theological audit?
Every FISLI unit passes four gates: Voice/Register Compliance, Primary Source Authentication, Theological Alignment Review (human scholars only), and Visual QA. No unit ships without passing all four.
What theological tradition does FISLI represent?
The classical Sunni scholarly consensus of Ahl al-Sunnah, honoring all four madhabs equally. The seven theological compliance rules are available upon request.
Does FISLI use AI in curriculum production?
Yes, as a production tool in three of four gates. Gate 3 — theological compliance — is governed entirely by the human scholarly board. The governance model is publicly documented.