About Us

Imam Papa Mboup graduated from Shaikh Moukhsine Diop’s Quranic School in Saint Louis, Sénégal in 1979. He earned a Masters of Arts degree in English/French from Sorbonne University in 1985. He also holds diplomas in business communications and in Arabic Language from Karachi University and Pakistan Arabic institute respectively. Over the span of 10 years, 1986-1996, he served in various managerial capacities at the Islamic Chamber of Commerce which is an affiliated body of the Organization of Islamic Conference (OIC). 

After moving to the United States Imam Papa followed his passion for teaching and worked as a public school teacher in a French immersion school in PG County, MD, while also translating French for the DMV courts and tribunals. After settling in the DMV area and nudging from the community, Imam Papa also then decided to combine his passion for Islam and teaching by offering Quranic teaching and Islamic jurisprudence to Muslims in the DMV area. 

With the support of the community he has founded ILMA furthering his reach and impact. He has been invited to many conferences around the world to promote Islamic teachings and principles. He is also a founding member of the Montgomery County Faith Community Working Group, the Silver Spring Interfaith Circle, and the Mid-Atlantic Interfaith Group and the Jewish And Muslims Acting Together(JAMAT), to name only these. Imam Papa is fluent in Wolof, French, English, Arabic, and Urdu. In his free time he loves to read and hike. 

Here at ILMA Center, we aim to create and advance a community of young citizens who will grow to successful in both deen and dunya focusing on championing their identity as US Muslims while keeping their faith and community engagement at the core of their growth. ILMA Center was born in the living room of Imam Papa Mboup who dedicated his home and his time to teaching Quran to kids on weekends. We've consistently grown since then, all thanks to the helping hands of this amazing community and ILMA alumni.