NARGES JALAH, Legal Services Coordinator

Narges Jalah is a dedicated advocate and community leader based in the Bay Area, with roots in Pasadena, CA. Beginning her career in financial technology, Narges found herself drawn to more meaningful and impactful work, leading her to transition into the realm of social justice and community empowerment.

After welcoming her son, Narges embarked on a journey to make a difference in the lives of others. Joining the Council on American Islamic Relations, she took on the challenge of creating and managing programs tailored to support newly arrived Afghans in the Northern California region. In this role, Narges has been instrumental in bridging gaps and providing vital resources to those in need.

Narges's collaborative spirit shines through her work, as she partners with various organizations and stakeholders who share a common goal of uplifting the community. Through her efforts, she has witnessed the transformative power of collective action and collaboration.

Driven by her passion for serving the Muslim community, Narges remains steadfast in her commitment to making a positive impact. Her dedication and advocacy serve as a beacon of hope and inspiration to those around her, embodying the values of compassion, empathy, and resilience.

SARA NOORZAY, Alumni Coordinator

Born in Kabul, Afghanistan, Sara came to the United States at the young age of two.  She currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.  Throughout her life, she has been very involved with the Afghan-American community, taking on a variety of roles with community organizations.  Sara has been part of the AACO community since its inception in 2015, as a Conference Participant 2015-2017, Committee Member from 2018-2020, and now after a two-year break has rejoined the AACO team. 

In her professional career,  Sara is a Sr. Principal Success Manager at Slack, managing some of Slack's largest media customers.  She has more than 15 years of experience in client/relationship, project and risk management with 10+ years of experience in the Management Consulting space.

OMAR NOORZAY, Technology Coordinator

Omar was born and raised in Los Angeles, where he has always been surrounded by his extensive Afghan family. His involvement with the Afghan-American community began during his undergraduate years at UCLA when he joined the United Afghan Club. This sparked a growing passion for being an active member in the community, which was further strengthened after attending the first Afghan-American Conference in 2015. Since then, he has been constantly seeking ways to stay involved. In 2018, he took his involvement a step further by designing and developing AACO’s first mobile application for iOS and Android.

In his professional career, Omar combines his passion for innovation and commitment to making a difference as Co-Founder and Chief Product Officer at Weeve, LLC, where he and his team designed the first ever AI chatbot for employee engagement. Omar also serves as a strategic workplace program manager at Amazon, where he leverages his expertise to create workplace strategies that are focused on technology and efficiency in the new work-from-home era.

DARYA MOINI, Operations Coordinator

Darya hails from New York and grew up with a large extended family, but sometimes still felt lost and struggled with her dual identity. Attending AAC for the first time in 2018, her experience opened her eyes to a diaspora of like-minded individuals who share a common identity. This motivated her to want to contribute and give back to not only her community in the Tri-State region, but on a national level. Darya joined the AACO committee back in 2021 and it has been her absolute privilege to work alongside such a passionate and dedicated community. 

Darya graduated from Hofstra Honors College with a degree in Political Science and minor in Economics. She works as an Operations Analyst who specializes in Financial Services Banking and Mid-Size Enterprise. In her free time, she enjoys traveling, being a foodie, being competitive at all games, outdoor activities, spending time with family, Marvel movies and being a coffee connoisseur.

ALI SAADAT, Operations Coordinator

Ali is a project manager for the Middle Eastern Student Center at UC Riverside. He was born and raised in Southern California to parents who immigrated from Herat, Afghanistan. He is passionate about working in community spaces and providing opportunities for young people from SWANA backgrounds. In his free time, he enjoys being disappointed by the Los Angeles Lakers, Buffalo Bills, and Chelsea FC.

NADEEMA SAFI, Programming Coordinator

Born in Queens, NY but raised in Denver, CO, Nadeema grew up feeling isolated from the small community of Afghans that surrounded her. It wasn’t until she entered high school that she became more confident in her unique Afghan-American identity. She feels lucky that her parents raised her in a fashion that allowed her to keep her Afghan roots and traditions alive while living in a region that lacked extensive representation.

Nadeema is a proud recipient of the 2020 AACO Scholarship, which sparked her interest in joining the larger committee. Ever since becoming a committee member, she has developed a stronger connection with the Afghan-American community–something that she has always yearned for.

Nadeema graduated from the University of Colorado Denver after pursuing her Bachelor of Science degree in Public Health and currently resides in Northern Virginia. She proudly utilizes the knowledge she has gained throughout the years with her clinical experiences and ties them to the world of cyber security and intelligent data mining within her current role. On the weekends, you can find Nadeema scoping out new coffee shops in the DMV.

SILGAI MOHMAND, Programming Coordinator

Silgai is a Deputy Public Defender at the Orange County Public Defender’s Office. She provides legal representation to those unable to financially afford legal services. She was born and raised in So-Cal. She is also one of the co-founders of Muslawmah, an online platform dedicated to empowering and supporting Muslim women in the legal field. She is also involved in various Afghan and Muslim communities in So-Cal. Silgai earned her J.D. from Chapman University, Fowler School of Law and received a Bachelor’s degree in Economics from University of California, Irvine. During law school, she was a Merit Scholar and awarded the Joann Leatherby Leadership Award for Women in the Law. Some of her activities included serving as the Editor-In-Chief of her school’s Diversity and Social Justice Forum and President of the Muslim Law Student Association.

ALINA AMILEE, Marketing Coordinator

Alina is an Afghan-American Bay Area, California native who is currently based in Southern California. Alina attends California State University, Fullerton as a Marketing major and serves as the Head of Social Media and Design for AACO. Inspired by her maternal grandfather’s role in academia and the current political climate in the motherland, she is passionate about the work AACO does to support Afghan youth in attaining a proper education with scholarships. She is proud and grateful to work with other intelligent young minds to push for more Afghan excellence. 

She hopes to use her background in marketing, creativity as an artist, and entrepreneurial skills to create the best designs and marketing campaigns for AACO in order to increase exposure to the organization, so that more Afghan youth can acquire the opportunity for a better education and a sense of community.

HELAI KARIM RUTAN, Marketing Coordinator

Helai Karim Rutan is an Afghan-American graduate of James Madison University with a Bachelor of Music in Music Education. From Fairfax, Virginia, Helai currently serves as the Choral Director at Lightridge High School in Aldie, Virginia and holds leadership positions with the Virginia Music Educators Association and the American Choral Directors Association.

Helai spent most of her formative years in predominantly white spaces and struggled to settle into her Afghan-American identity. This all changed after her life-changing experience of attending her first Afghan-American Conference. She was inspired to join the AACO committee and is grateful to serve.

SOPHIA SULTANI, Marketing Coordinator

Although being born in New York, Sophia was mainly raised in the suburbs of New Jersey, unexposed to the Afghan-American community. As she navigated through high school and college, she was in a constant search for friends that she could relate to in terms of culture and tradition. After attending her first AAC in 2023, she felt included and closer to her heritage. Her positive experience at the conference pushed her to increase her involvement in the Afghan-American collective.

In May of 2023, Sophia graduated from Rutgers University with a degree in Business Economics. Currently, she works in the banking industry and is part of a rotational program, focusing on the different teams within operations. She is looking forward to combining her leadership experiences from Rutgers and the skills she acquires from her rotations, to support the Marketing Committee in executing their social media campaigns and creating their designs. She is grateful for the opportunity to work with AACO and give back to the Afghan-American community. It is important for the Afghan Diaspora to feel seen and heard, and she appreciates how AACO advocates for inclusivity. In her spare time, you will find Sophia rewatching the Harry Potter movies for the 100th time or trying to figure out what concert to go to next.

MARIAM DANISH, Marketing Coordinator

Mariam Danish was born and raised in Southern California. She grew up surrounded by a large Afghan family. As a first generation American, she struggled with finding a balance between her identities. While she pursued her Bachelor's at University of California, Riverside, Mariam became involved with the Afghan and Middle Eastern community. Mariam thrived being around like-minded individuals with similar experiences. Her passion lies with working with the diaspora and strengthening the community.

Having completed her bachelor's in Business Administration with a concentration in Marketing, Mariam is working as a professional in the marketing field and is excited to bring her experiences to help strengthen AACO’s efforts.

KAWSAR NASIR, Outreach Coordinator

Kawsar was born and raised in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and immigrated to Dallas, Texas in 2005 at the young age of 8 years old. Kawsar’s journey of navigating her identity led her to join the United Afghan Club at UCLA, where she made her first Afghan friendships and began to support many initiatives in the Afghan community.

Kawsar is a proud AACO scholarship recipient and has graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a BS in Psychobiology and a minor in Global Health, as well as the University of Southern California with a Masters of Public Health, focusing on Global Health and Epidemiology. Working as a clinical research coordinator, Kawsar is currently drafting two research papers that will be published in the American Journal of Oncology in the field of colorectal cancer. Having grandparents who’ve passed away from cancer, Kawsar hopes to continue her career in oncology and research.

Giving back to the Afghan community, both nationally and internationally, has been a lifelong goal for Kawsar and she hopes that her background can assist in the accomplishment of AACO’s goals this year.

OMID SHABON, Outreach Coordinator

Omid, a dynamic professional in the field of Data Engineering, was born on the West Coast and has been a resident of the DMV region throughout his life. Passionate about community engagement, Omid has played multiple roles within the Afghan-American community. Since 2019, he has been an integral part of AACO, initially as a Conference Participant and later on as a Cohort Lead.

In his professional journey, Omid seamlessly blends his passion for innovation with a commitment to making a difference. As the Founder of ITPS (IT Protection Services), he has demonstrated his expertise and dedication in the realm of data protection and innovation. Rooted in Computational Data and Sciences at George Mason University, Omid's distinguished career spans over a decade of impactful contributions, including roles at Apple and the Center For Advanced Defense Studies, where he shaped data strategies. His unwavering commitment to excellence in his career uniquely positions him as he takes on the role of Outreach Coordinator at AACO.

WASHMA ABDULLAH, Programming Coordinator

Washma was born and raised in northern Virginia and is one of six siblings. The majority of her interactions thus far with the diaspora, was within her family. This changed when she attended her first AACO two years ago. She started to feel a deeper connection to her community and gradually became more interested in working with the committee.

Her younger brother’s diagnosis of Autism Spectrum Disorder has led her to advocate for individuals with special needs. She has worked with Muhsen since 2019 to create inclusive opportunities and resources for Muslims with disabilities. Outside of her career, she is an avid book reader and loves to travel.

MERSAL FAIZI, Professional Development Coordinator

Mersal is an Afghan-American native New Yorker, born and raised in Queens. She currently manages early career talent programs for the world’s largest media investment company. Eager to empower her fellow Afghan-Americans, she seeks to impart her expertise in personal and professional growth. In her free time, she enjoys cooking and discovering new music.

CODE OF CONDUCT COORDINATORS

Your AACO Code of Conduct Coordinators work to investigate, manage, and evaluate reports submitted through the AACO Code of Conduct process. They strive to ensure that people are comfortable in this space, including dealing with any concerns or hesitations that might arise.

ALEXANDRA MILLATMAL, Code of Conduct Coordinator

A product of the small-town midwest, Alexandra has always been “half-ghan”; feeling both and neither, here and there. Seeing her younger sister grow into the world and having the opportunity to visit and meet many of her extended family in Afghanistan for the first time in 2013, galvanized Alex to renew her commitment and connection to her Afghan community. For the last decade, she has proudly been self-defining her hyphenated identity through involvement with organizations like Ajam Media Collective, the Asian American Writers Workshop, the Afghan-American Community Organization, Afghan American Artists and Writers Association, and Afghans For a Better Tomorrow. 

Alex works as a proudly-unionized software engineer, writing code that helps editorial teams publish engaging, complex journalism and opinion writing for millions of global readers. Away from her day job, Alex finds herself preoccupied with the liberation, liminality, and futurity inherent in both her mixed and queer experiences. She is a Pushcart-nominated writer, proud older sister, and steward to two elderly house cats.

DAWOUD WAZIRI, Code of Conduct Coordinator

Dawoud was born and raised in Northern Virginia and has been in Southern California since 2006. He’s currently working as a sales manager, as well as being one of the founders of The Samovar Network, a progressive and inclusive Afghan diasporic hub. That fosters honest conversations that center the marginalized, reinvigorate culture, and build community.

MADINA WARDAK, Code of Conduct Coordinator

Madina, MSW/ACSW, is a social worker, consultant, trainer and facilitator based out of Los Angeles, CA. Madina received a Bachelors in Political Science with an emphasis on the Middle East from UC Irvine and a Masters in Social Work from the University of Southern California. Madina has served foster youth experiencing housing instability since 2018 at both Covenant House California and First Place For Youth. She has been involved in grassroots organizing through SWANA-LA since 2015. Madina has previously served as a facilitator for various workshops at the Afghan American Conference regarding identity, mental health and substance abuse. Since the withdrawal of American troops from Afghanistan, she has served as a trainer and facilitator, consulting social service agencies serving Afghan refugees. She is the founder of Burqas & Beer, an online digital platform discussing Afghan mental health, intergenerational trauma, political issues, identity, and socio-cultural events. Most recently, her poetry was featured in the Afghan American Artists & Writers written anthology, “EMERGENC(Y): Writing Afghan Lives Beyond the Forever War.”

MENTAL HEALTH ADVISOR

Your AACO Mental Health Advisor advises the Committee on mental health matters for events and workshops. This includes but is not limited to selection, training and management of CARE Team members for AAC, advising committee members on mental health-related matters, and providing advice for any mental health-related programming.

NILO SIDIQI, Mental Health Advisor

Nilo is a practicing School Psychologist  and Associate Marriage Family Therapist in Northern California. She received her Bachelors of Arts degree in Psychology and a Minor in Education from the University of California Davis and her Master of Science degree in Counseling from California State University East Bay. She has a passion for working with children with disabilities and providing equitable services in the school setting. She is a strong advocate for bringing access to mental health services to the Afghan community and Muslim community as a whole. She was a member of the CARE Team for the 2022 Afghan American Conference.