Islamic school proposed for shuttered Elgin Academy

Editor’s note: This story has been updated to reflect that the Elgin History Museum is not part of the Elgin Academy campus.

Elgin Academy, the private school which closed in June after 185 years, is being sold to an organization that intends to establish an Islamic school for preschool through 12th grade students, according to an Elgin Academy official and a YouTube video produced by organizers behind the proposed Burhan Academy.

Paul Druzinsky, the interim head of the nonsectarian Elgin Academy, confirmed the asking price of the 350 Park St. property is $3.7 million and the sale is set to close later this month.

Organizers are attempting to raise several million dollars by the end of the month to purchase the 18-acre campus.

“I think it’s wonderful we’re selling it to another school that will carry on the tradition of excellence,” said Druzinsky. “It’s something the community needs.”

Elgin Academy had a diverse enrollment that included a number of Muslim students, said Druzinsky, an educator for more than 40 years, adding the families valued education and excellence.

“The Muslim families I’ve worked with have been wonderful,” he said.

Like other religious day schools, Druzinsky said, Burhan Academy aims to provide “a rigorous and excellent academic program under the auspices of their faith.”

According to the new school’s website, the mission of the Burhan Academy is to ensure “students receive a comprehensive education that meets academic standards while incorporating Islamic teachings.”

Educators will adopt a holistic educational approach that incorporates “Islamic perspective into the academic curriculum” to “equip students with a comprehensive understanding of various subjects at the highest level of academic excellence while instilling Islamic values, knowledge, and principles.”

In addition to four buildings housing classrooms, the campus includes an art gallery; gymnasium; offices for admissions, administration, development and alumni relations; and a sports complex consisting of tennis courts, fields and a track.

To read and to learn by the pen is “the hallmark of our Islamic civilization, which is a promotion of education, teaching, knowledge,” said Dr. Hamid Nazeer, a member of Burhan’s board of directors, in the YouTube video. “It is through that knowledge that we learn and understand our creator … It’s through that knowledge that we can refine our character. It’s through that knowledge that we can beautify the environment around us. And it’s through that knowledge that we can ultimately service the community and people.”