Clara Mohammed School, Inc.

EXCELLENCE

Milwaukee's First Islamic School and Masjid

OUR HISTORY

Clara Mohammed School, Inc. is committed to educating the students entrusted to us. We seek to cultivate within each child the pattern of human excellence and good character that was designed by G_d, outlined in the Qur’an, and exemplified in the life of Prophet Muhammed (Peace and Blessings be Upon Him). In turn, these students will become models for the world. It is with daily, conscious effort that we lead our children into a life style where they will become productive and valued citizens of the world. Our struggles are great but the rewards are far greater.

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Clara Mohammed School, Inc. in Milwaukee is a member of a small nationwide school system of the same name (Clara Mohammed Schools) that was formed as the University of Islam, the elementary school system of the Nation of Islam, led by the Honorable Elijah Mohammed.  In the early 1930’s, a man, W. D. Fard, came to the United States from a region in Asia that is now Pakistan.   He taught that the descendants of slaves in America were actually descendants of a great people from the continent of Africa, a lost tribe; that the religion they had lost was Islam and they were, Muslims.  Mr. Fard recruited Elijah Poole to lead the new, ‘Lost Found Nation of Islam in the Wilderness of North America”. Elijah Poole, who was renamed by Mr. Fard, Elijah Mohammed, led the Nation of Islam from 1933-1975.

The Nation of Islam under the Honorable Elijah Mohammed became the most prominent socio-religious movement among African Americans for more than 42 years. Sister Clara Mohammed (the wife of the leader of the Honorable Elijah Mohammed) began teaching her children at home and her spirit for educating her own children exemplified the spirit of the other mothers in the Nation of Islam.  Eventually, an elementary school for the Nation of Islam was established, called, the “University of Islam”, in Detroit in 1932.  Several elementary schools, following this prototype, sprang up around the country. As Muslim families in Milwaukee sought to educate their children, a school developed.  

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The school soon grew into an educational institution serving Milwaukee families of all faiths. Consequently, the University of Islam in Milwaukee (established in 1972), came to be called Sister Clara Muhammad Preparatory School (in honor of Sister Clara).  Sister Clara Muhammad Preparatory School was established to educate the children of the Muslim community.

But, the school, since its inception, has always educated children of all faiths from the Harambee Community of Milwaukee and the surrounding areas.

With the passing of the Honorable Elijah Mohammed, in 1975, his son, the new leader, Imam W. Deen Mohammed, led the movement from 1975-2008. In 1998, Sister Clara Muhammad Preparatory School was renamed, Clara Mohammed School, Inc. and joined the groundbreaking Milwaukee Parental Choice Program.  Clara Mohammed School, Inc. is housed on the site of Sultan Muhammad Islamic Center, the first one established in the City of Milwaukee. Today, Clara Mohammed School, Inc. regularly enrolls more than 200 students from kindergarten through high school.