Eden Prairie man awarded Bush Fellowship
Asad Aliweyd of Eden Prairie is one of 24 people to receive a Bush Foundation Fellowship, the organization announced March 20.
Each fellowship consists of $100,000, doled out over 1-2 years, awarded for recipients to “pursue learning experiences that help them develop leadership skills and attributes,” according to a foundation release. A total of 751 people applied for the 2018 fellowships, which accept applicants from Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota and the 23 Native American nations who share the same geography.
Aliweyd intends to use the fellowship to complete a doctorate in public administration at Hamline University. His main goal with the fellowship and doctorate is to break down barriers to prosperity and home ownership that he has identified in some of Minnesota’s immigrant communities, particularly those from East Africa.
“For the last 15 years, I have been working with the East African and Muslim communities — I’ve had a lot of experiences and background about what these communities need when it comes to wealth building and sustainability,” said Aliweyd.
According to Aliweyd, a cultural obstacle makes it difficult for some individuals to buy houses, start and run small businesses and build wealth in general. In the communities he identified, many individuals find any interest-based transactions unacceptable.
“When you’re buying a home, you have to get financing from a bank – an interest-based bank – which is not acceptable to the background, to our culture where we came from,” said Aliweyd. “I can sell my home in a profit-based transaction, but having even one dollar of interest is not culturally appropriate for the community.”
Aliweyd’s goal, with this in mind, is to create an alternative funding mechanism to help members of these communities to purchase homes, pursue business ownership and build wealth in general. Similarly, he hopes to address the financial difficulties that can accompany recent immigration.
“They are new to the United States,” said Aliweyd. “Although they work, although they will be able to buy homes, they don’t have established credit … my goal is to create Muslim financial experts, people who know about these systems, academics, policymakers and imams, to come up with a workable alternative financing solution for this community.”
He noted that his desire to help was not isolated to the communities he identified.
“We want the Muslim and African culture in Minnesota, and throughout the United States, to be part of the public, part of the United States — to realize the American dream and stay positive contributors to society,” said Aliweyd. “I am not advocating to change anything. I would like to increase awareness, on the part of government officials and policymakers, about the systematic and cultural barriers and challenges that hinder the financial and economic growth of the Muslim immigrant community in Minnesota.”
Aliweyd said that he has already started taking one class for the doctorate he plans to pursue. He currently holds an undergraduate degree in mathematics and a master’s in public administration, but hopes that the doctorate will broaden his ability to bring change.
“I want to understand better how different parts of government work, and how policies have been created and implemented,” said Aliweyd.
His goals fall well within the criteria for the Bush Fellowship, according to Bush Foundation Leadership Programs Director Anita Patel.
“The fellowships are really designed to help leaders who are already having an impact in their communities to become even stronger,” said Patel. “Something that inspires us is that 751 people are thinking about how they want to grow and the type of change they want to make in their communities.”
Patel described three stages to the rigorous selection process, which involve Bush Foundation staff members, community leaders and previous fellowship recipients. All of the money eventually awarded comes from investments made by Archie and Edith Bush, the St. Paul-based foundation’s namesakes.
“We’ve been doing it for over 60 years,” said Patel. “This is our direct link to Archie Bush. He believed in paying from his own pocket to develop leaders.”
Aliweyd said that he and his family were extremely excited to find out that he had been awarded the fellowship.
“We were so excited, because this is my dream,” said Aliweyd. “I am a committed, public servant type of person, so this gives me hope that I could change something. I think this will be a great, great thing, not only for me, but for the community that I am working with.”
