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Edina Leković is the inaugural Community Scholar in Residence withUCLA's Islamic Studies Program and theFowler Museum, where is researching and sharing the history of Muslim Los Angeles. She also serves as the Executive Director of the Robert Ellis Simon Foundation, which supports mental wellness services for L.A. County’s most vulnerable residents. Her expertise in storytelling, strategic communications, media relations, leadership development and interfaith community building have been shaped, tested and honed over 25 years of service to advance the cause of American Muslims.
Leković has appeared on leading media outlets, includingCNN,MSNBC,FOX News,NPR,Al-Jazeera andBuzzFeed. In 2015, she was named one of L.A.’s “10 Most Inspiring Women Game Changers” byLos Angeles Magazine after she gave the historic first sermon at theWomen's Mosque of America. She was also named one of the "500 Most Influential Muslims in the World" byGeorgetown University and theRoyal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre in 2009.
Leković is aMontenegrin American whose parents are fromBar, Montenegro in the formerYugoslavia.[1]She completed her graduate work in Communication atPepperdine University and received her B.A. in American Literature & Culture. In 1997-98, she served as Editor-in-Chief of theDaily Bruin which was named a top student publication in the country by theSociety of Professional Journalists.
From 2000 to 2004, she served as Managing Editor ofThe Minaret, an American Muslim magazine published monthly from 1978-2004. During that time, she also co-founded Elev8, an arts-based youth leadership program for Muslim Angelenos.She worked with theMuslim Public Affairs Council from 2004 to 2014 as an advocate on behalf of American Muslims in news media, interfaith, community, and pop culture spaces -- first as Communications Director and then as Director of Policy & Programs. In 2006, she co-founded NewGround, an organization to foster communication between Muslim and Jewish Angelenos, and she continues to serve on the board of directors.[2] She was also on the founding team of theAmerican Muslim Civic Leadership Institute, housed at USC's Center for Religion and Civic Culture, and is also a proud alum.