Soraya Ahyaudin directs the American Muslim Civic Leadership Initiative at the USC Center for Religion and Civic Culture.

Ahyaudin is an alum of the American Muslim Civic Leadership Initiative (AMCLI West II). Before joining CRCC, Ahyaudin worked in the fields of public diplomacy, educational exchanges and capacity building. She was the program assistant at the USC Center on Public Diplomacy, where she managed the center’s event programming, professional training opportunities and office management. Her work experience also includes assistant registrar at the international office of Universiti Sains Malaysia, and assistant director with the Public Service Department of Malaysia. Her diverse work experience has cultivated her interest in the intersections of faith diplomacy with globalization and diaspora narratives and sentiments.

Ahyaudin has an ijazah in the Forty Hadith of Imam an-Nawawi and the 40 Hadith of Palestine. An ijazah certifies one’s understanding of and ability to share sacred texts. She graduated from the Masters of Public Diplomacy program at the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism in 2015. She also has a Master’s degree in Science and Environmental Journalism from Universiti Sains Malaysia and a Bachelor’s degree in Communication (Journalism) from MARA University of Technology, Malaysia.