SMF Commends SPACE’s “Shia Intern Connect” for Empowering and Uniting Shia Youth Across North America

Washington, D.C. – The Shia Muslim Foundation (SMF) is proud to commend SPACE (Shia Professional Academic Conference & Empowerment) for its launch of the Shia Intern Connect initiative—an innovative, youth-driven program designed to foster mentorship, professional support, and community ties among Shia Muslim students and interns across North America.

Launched in Summer 2025, Shia Intern Connect offers a straightforward but powerful tool: connecting Shia Muslim interns through regional group chats. These informal spaces allow students to meet, share advice, build relationships, and navigate their summer internships together. Whether interns are in government, tech, nonprofit, academia, or corporate settings, the program provides a low-barrier, high-impact method for creating meaningful connections and addressing the often-isolating nature of being a visible Muslim in professional spaces.

This effort reflects a broader mission led by SPACE: to create structured, intentional space for Shia Muslim youth to learn, network, express creativity, and prepare for impactful futures. The organization was established by young Shia professionals to fill long-standing gaps in mentorship, career preparation, and identity-affirming spaces. Through annual conferences, themed workshops, creative programming, and grassroots initiatives like Shia Intern Connect, SPACE has quickly become one of the most significant youth-led Shia platforms in the West.

“We deeply respect what SPACE is building,” said Rahat Husain, Executive Director of the Shia Muslim Foundation. “Programs like Shia Intern Connect don’t just support young people—they help rewire our community’s future. They give Shia youth tools, relationships, and encouragement to step forward, lead, and shape the institutions around them. SMF stands behind this effort fully.”

In addition to Intern Connect, SPACE has previously held successful conferences in Los Angeles and Vancouver, bringing together hundreds of attendees, dozens of mentors, speakers, and workshop leaders to explore everything from Islamic identity in the arts to navigating law school or launching a startup. Their focus areas—Education, Creativity, and Professionalism—reflect a strategic understanding of the challenges facing today’s Shia youth.

SMF views this kind of work as essential to the broader goals of civic engagement and religious identity. As an organization that advocates for the rights and representation of Shia Muslims, both domestically and globally, SMF believes that empowering the next generation of leaders is a long-term investment in the strength and future of the American Shia community.

“This is about more than networking,” Husain added. “It’s about transforming how we see each other—students seeing themselves as professionals, as capable, as part of something larger. That’s the real power of what SPACE is doing.”

SMF encourages students and young professionals to take advantage of the Shia Intern Connect program by visiting bit.ly/ShiaInternsConnect and urges community leaders and institutions to partner with and support SPACE’s ongoing work.

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About the Shia Muslim Foundation

The Shia Muslim Foundation (SMF) is a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., committed to advancing the civil, political, and religious rights of Shia Muslims in the United States and internationally. Through policy advocacy, civic engagement, educational programs, and community support initiatives, SMF seeks to elevate the visibility, dignity, and leadership of the Shia community.

About SPACE

SPACE (Shia Professional Academic Conference & Empowerment) is a youth-led organization that creates platforms for Shia Muslim youth to learn, network, express creativity, and grow professionally. It caters to the educational, creative, and career development needs of Shia students and early-career professionals in the West, with a focus on mentorship, leadership, and identity-centered engagement.