Source: The Atlanta Journal and Constitution

On January 20, 2000, The Atlanta Journal and Constitution published an article on two Islamic schools in Atlanta, Georgia, Clara Mohammed Elementary School and W. Deen Mohammed High School. The Mohammed schools are celebrating their 20th anniversary. The system began with the elementary school and added the high school in 1987. Operating under the leadership of the 2,000-member Atlanta Masjid of Al-Islam, the Mohammed schools share the same campus and serve 300 students from pre-kindergarten through high school. Clara Mohammed Elementary is one of only two Islamic elementary schools in the area and W. Deen Mohammed High School is the only Islamic high school in the Atlanta area. Bayyinah Shaheed, event coordinator for the schools, stated: "We have come this far because of the support of and encouragement of good Atlantans - both Muslim and non-Muslim...We are a community school." The Mohammed schools started graduating high school students in 1992 and many of them have gone on to study at Ivy League universities. Sandra El-Amin, principal of the elementary school whose two children graduated from the system and went on to Harvard, stated: "We're private, but not elitist...We emphasize respect and the unity of mankind here. It is reflected in our students."