Shenila Khoja-Moolji is the Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani Associate Professor of Muslim Societies at
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...
.
She is known for her scholarship on
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
,
gender
Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...
, and
Pakistan
Pakistan ( ur, ), officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan ( ur, , label=none), is a country in South Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of almost 24 ...
studies. She is a leading Shia
Ismaili
Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...
Muslim scholar.
Khoja-Moolji is the author of two books that have won awards from international academic associations: ''Forging the Ideal Educated Girl: The Production of Desirable Subjects in Muslim South Asia'' and ''Sovereign Attachments: Masculinity, Muslimness, and Affective Politics in Pakistan''.
Early life and education
Khoja-Moolji grew up in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
, Pakistan.
She received a scholarship from the
United World Colleges
United World Colleges (UWC) is an international network of schools and educational programmes with the shared aim of "making education a force to unite people, nations and cultures for peace and a sustainable future." The organization was founde ...
to do an
International Baccalaureate
The International Baccalaureate (IB), formerly known as the International Baccalaureate Organization (IBO), is a nonprofit foundation headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland, and founded in 1968. It offers four educational programmes: the IB Dip ...
.
She then earned an undergraduate degree from
Brown University
Brown University is a private research university in Providence, Rhode Island. Brown is the seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the United States, founded in 1764 as the College in the English Colony of Rhode Island and Providenc ...
, a Masters from
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
, and a doctorate from
Columbia University
Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...
.
Career
Between 2016 and 2018, Khoja-Moolji was a postdoctoral and visiting scholar at the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
’s Alice Paul Center for Research on Gender, Sexuality and Women. In 2018, she joined the Gender, Sexuality, and Women’s Studies program at
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Brunswick, Maine. When Bowdoin was chartered in 1794, Maine was still a part of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The college offers 34 majors and 36 minors, as well as several joint eng ...
, where she earned early tenure and promotion within four years. In 2022, Khoja-Moolji was appointed as the Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani Associate Professor of Muslim societies, a tenured and endowed chair position, at
Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...
.
Khoja-Moolji is known for her theorizations of Muslim girlhood, which includes several articles that analyze the portrayal of
Malala Yousafzai
Malala Yousafzai ( ur, , , pronunciation: ; born 12 July 1997), is a Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Awarded when she was 17, she is the world's youngest Nobel Prize laureate, and the second Pak ...
and the politics of international development campaigns.
Her first book, ''Forging the Ideal Educated Girl: The Production of Desirable Subjects in Muslim South Asia'', published by the
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
(2018), is a genealogy of the ‘educated girl.’ The book shows how girl’s education is a site of struggle for multiple groups—from national to religious elites—through which they construct gender, class, and religious identities. The book was published in the Islamic Humanities open-access series. The book won the 2019 Jackie Kirk Outstanding Book Award from the Comparative and International Education Society.
Her second book, ''Sovereign Attachments: Masculinity, Muslimness, and Affective Politics in Pakistan'', also published the
University of California Press
The University of California Press, otherwise known as UC Press, is a publishing house associated with the University of California that engages in academic publishing. It was founded in 1893 to publish scholarly and scientific works by faculty ...
(2021), re-theorizes sovereignty by drawing on affect, cultural, and religious studies. The book won the Best Book Award from the Theory section of the
International Studies Association
The International Studies Association (ISA) is a US-based professional association for scholars and practitioners in the field of international studies. Founded in 1959, ISA has been headquartered at the University of Connecticut in Storrs since ...
.
In 2019, Khoja-Moolji was elected to the South Asia Council of the
Association for Asian Studies The Association for Asian Studies (AAS) is a scholarly, non-political and non-profit professional association focusing on Asia and the study of Asia. It is based in Ann Arbor, Michigan, United States.
The Association provides members with an Annua ...
.
Khoja-Moolji is the recipient of three career awards: the Emerging Scholar Award from the Muslim Philanthropy Initiative based at
Indiana University
Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana.
Campuses
Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI.
*Indiana Universit ...
; the Early Career Award for Community Engagement from the International Studies Association’s Feminist Theory and Gender Studies section;
and the Early Career Award from
Teachers College, Columbia University
Teachers College, Columbia University (TC), is the graduate school of education, health, and psychology of Columbia University, a private research university in New York City. Founded in 1887, it has served as one of the official faculties and ...
.
Khoja-Moolji regularly publishes in
Al Jazeera
Al Jazeera ( ar, الجزيرة, translit-std=DIN, translit=al-jazīrah, , "The Island") is a state-owned Arabic-language international radio and TV broadcaster of Qatar. It is based in Doha and operated by the media conglomerate Al Jazeera ...
and the
Express Tribune to convey scholarly ideas to the public.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Khoja-Moolji, Shenila
Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Georgetown University faculty
Harvard University alumni
Brown University alumni
Columbia University alumni
Muslim writers
Women and education
21st-century Pakistani women writers
American religion academics
American scholars of Islam
Religious studies scholars
Women scholars of Islam
American Islamic studies scholars
20th-century Ismailis
Pakistani Ismailis
21st-century American women writers