Our Team
Sajida Jalalzai,
Co-Host, Writer, Researcher
Dr. Sajida Jalalzai is a scholar of Islam and Muslims in North America whose work examines religion, power, and public life. She is the Principal Investigator of the Texas Academic Futures Lab, a research project documenting academic repression and threats to academic freedom in Texas. She is also a Scholar in Residence at the Institute for Diversity and Civic Life, which documents Texas’s religious and cultural diversity through oral history, community-based research, and public education.
Habiba Noor,
Co-Host, Writer, Researcher
Dr. Habiba Noor is a teacher and scholar in San Antonio, Texas, where she teaches in the Department of Education at Trinity University. Her work examines education, academic freedom, and the politics of belonging. She is the author of To Be Honest: Voices on the Muslim Ban, a documentary theater project based on research documenting the political narratives about Muslims that preceded the first Trump administration’s Muslim Ban. Her current work focuses on the changing political landscape of education and academic freedom in Texas.
Zoya Zia,
Co-Producer, Researcher, Community Engagement Lead
Zoya Zia is a writer, researcher, and community engagement specialist whose work focuses on meaningful youth-centered programming. Her research examines how cultural exchange, including arts and sports, can create pathways for engaging histories, identity, and belonging. She has developed tools for assessing lived experience in Mexico City, Bangkok, and London, where she earned her Master of Science in Human Rights. After joining the Institute for Diversity and Civic Life as an intern in 2017, she returned almost a decade later as a Board Member. She is committed to sharing diverse perspectives of and about Texas and the South.
Tiffany Puett,
Executive Producer
Dr. Tiffany Puett is a public scholar, writer, and community educator whose work focuses on religious diversity, community-based research, and storytelling in Texas. She brings experience translating academic scholarship for broader audiences through journalism, podcasting, and public humanities initiatives. She is the Executive Director of the Institute for Diversity and Civic Life and teaches in the Department of Religious Studies at St. Edward’s University. Her work connects research, public scholarship, and community engagement.
Ger Fitzgerald,
Audio Production Lead
Dr. Ger FitzGerald is a political scientist whose research focuses on mis- and disinformation campaigns targeting Muslim-led humanitarian relief organizations. He also works in audio production, having trained at the School of Audio Engineering in London and worked at Stratosphere Sound recording studios in New York City. More recently, he produced the podcast Reign of Error with journalist Sarah Posner. His research and production experience bring together an interest in political communication and the ways stories are developed and shared.