UMD Stores has a wide array of products ranging from UMD gear to giftable items, as well as food and drinks. Though there was one item that it was lacking in, athletic hijabs.
That is until Mueez Ahmad, a now UMD graduate, felt it was important to have the Muslim women population on campus represented through the clothing options available at UMD Stores.
Mueez Ahmad graduated from UMD with a bachelor’s degree in Computer Science in May 2018. As a student, he involved himself in multiple extracurriculars such as serving as the director of Diversity and Inclusion for the Student Association, president of the Muslim Student Association (MSA) as well as a resident adviser for Housing and Residence Life.
During his time as president of the MSA, he read an article from the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, about a UMN graduate, Fatimah Hussein. She co-founded an athletic hijab company to “ensure girls of all backgrounds are able to run, jump, compete, and stay fit,” according to Monica Nassif, who was Hussein’s mentor.
Ahmad took this idea to his fellow executive board members as well as the general members of the MSA and got quite a bit of positive feedback. He proceeded to send out a survey through the Multicultural Center to get people’s opinions on bringing athletic hijabs to UMD Stores. Positive responses kept coming in; people were intrigued and supportive of the possibility.
Here are a few of the 112 responses from students and faculty, when asked why having athletic hijabs at UMD would be important:
“To support our Muslim students and athletes, particularly our Muslim women. They are an important part of our campus and our administration must support our Muslim students to ensure inclusivity and diversity of our campus.”
“It shows UMD is in support of the Muslim community and also sets a new standard for other colleges. It shows UMD welcomes everyone and supports them by giving them an open environment both in the classroom and outside the classroom.”
“Having athletic hijabs available for purchase would help add visibility to the fact that we at UMD are proud to have students from many cultural practices, and that hey, we know some of those people may also wanna work out too, let's show support for that and allow us to concurrently promote school spirit.”
Putting Plans Into Action
Ahmad took the feedback to UMD Stores' employee Ann Pellant, and they worked with Clothing Buyer Wendi Christenson to acquire the product.
Lensa Hassan, a senior here at UMD, majoring in Public Health was on the executive board with Ahmad at that time. She wears a hijab and was very excited about having options to buy at the store on campus.
“I really like them and as a Muslim woman, we really needed this type of representation at UMD,” said Hassan.
There are still a few athletic hijabs left at UMD Stores. They are one size fits all, available in the color black, sell for $39.99 and are made from a soft and lightweight fabric that allows for breathability, without hindering performance.
“It felt great to have athletic hijabs at the UMD store. I felt happy that we were finally getting HIjabs right in our school.”
Hassan's only feedback would be to have some cheaper options available. Having hijabs available at different price points will help reach larger populations as well as help drive sales.
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