Islamic University of Rotterdam: Realizing the Founding Vision of the First Independent Islamic University in Western Europe

1. Introduction

The institutionalization of Islamic higher education in Europe has become an increasingly important field of scholarly inquiry over the past three decades. Research has examined a wide range of issues, including imam training, Islamic theology programmes, state–religion relations, accreditation, Muslim religious leadership, and the position of Islamic educational institutions within European regulatory and social environments (Abou El Fadl 2004, Abū-Zaid, Amirpur, and Setiawan 2006; Aydınalp 2007; Boender 2006; Karahan 2019; Rath 1996; Sunier 2012). These studies have significantly advanced understanding of the emergence and institutional development of Islamic higher education in Europe. Much of the existing literature, however, has approached such institutions primarily through their immediate educational functions or their relationship with national systems of religious governance. Comparatively less attention has been devoted to the founding visions of Islamic higher education institutions and to the ways these visions may continue to influence institutional development over extended periods.

This question is particularly relevant because the development of higher education institutions rarely follows a single or uninterrupted trajectory. Founding ambitions may be realized in some areas while remaining dormant, becoming interrupted, or re-emerging in different forms under later generations of leadership. Institutional development is therefore shaped not only by formal mission statements or initial organizational structures, but also by changing leadership priorities, regulatory conditions, societal expectations, available resources, and opportunities for academic recognition. Examining the relationship between founding vision and long-term institutional development can consequently provide a deeper understanding of continuity and change within educational institutions.

The Islamic University of Rotterdam (IUR), today known as the Islamic University of Applied Sciences Rotterdam (IUASR), offers a particularly instructive case for such an analysis. Established in 1997 by Dr. S.T.K. Damra, who served as its founder and first rector, the institution emerged as the first independent Islamic university in Western Europe (Yılmaz 2026b). Its establishment occurred during a period in which questions concerning imam training, Muslim citizenship, religious leadership, social integration, and the institutional position of Islam were becoming increasingly prominent in the Netherlands and elsewhere in Europe. From its inception, however, the university was conceived as an institution intended to contribute not only to Muslim communities but also to the wider society in which those communities lived.

The institutional development of IUR/IUASR can be divided into three generations of leadership, as summarized in Table 1.

These three leadership phases provide a chronological framework for understanding how different dimensions of the founding vision were initiated, consolidated, interrupted, and re-activated under changing institutional circumstances.

The subsequent institutional trajectory of IUR/IUASR initially appears to have been dominated by religious and theological education. The Master programme in Islamic Spiritual Care received accreditation from the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (Nederlands-Vlaamse Accreditatieorganisatie, NVAO) in 2010 (NVAO 2010), followed by the Bachelor programme in Islamic Theology in 2013 (NVAO 2013). In 2026, the institution obtained accreditation for a teacher education programme for primary education (PABO) (NVAO 2026a). Viewed superficially, this development could be interpreted as a gradual movement from a specialized religious institution towards broader professional education.

The founding statutes adopted on 21 November 1997, the discourse surrounding the university’s establishment, and its early curriculum and institutional documents indicate that the original educational vision was considerably broader than imam training or theological formation alone (IUR 1997). During the founding conference held at Erasmus University Rotterdam on 8 December 1997, founder Damra emphasized that the university should engage with the social problems of contemporary society and contribute to their resolution through principles of justice, responsibility, and public service (Damra 1998). He also connected Islamic higher education with the development of Muslim citizenship and argued that the responsibilities of the institution should extend beyond the internal needs of Muslim communities to the well-being of society as a whole. The founding statutes similarly emphasized scientific research, educational development, professional formation, and contribution to a multicultural society (IUR 1997).

These sources suggest that the establishment of the university was guided by a multidimensional educational vision. Religious scholarship and the formation of religious professionals constituted important components of this project, but they existed alongside broader aspirations concerning scientific inquiry, education, culture, citizenship, social development, and public engagement. Early institutional initiatives reflected this diversity. In addition to theology and spiritual care, the university developed activities in Islamic languages and cultures and Islamic arts and media, while broader ambitions extended towards educational, social, and professional fields. Some of these initiatives developed into enduring institutional structures, whereas others were discontinued or remained unrealized.

The historical development of IUR/IUASR therefore raises a broader research problem. Existing accounts of Islamic higher education in Europe often focus on visible institutional outcomes, such as accredited programmes, theological faculties, imam-training initiatives, or relations with government authorities. Such approaches provide important insights but may overlook the longer-term relationship between an institution’s founding aspirations and its later organizational development. In particular, relatively little is known about how founding ideas are preserved, adapted, interrupted, re-activated, or transformed across successive generations of leadership and changing organizational environments.

This study addresses this gap by examining the relationship between the founding vision of the Islamic University of Rotterdam and its institutional development between 1997 and 2026. The central research question is:

How has the founding vision of the Islamic University of Rotterdam/IUASR been progressively realized through processes of institutional development, interruption, re-activation, and programme diversification between 1997 and 2026?

To answer this question, the study examines the principal components of the university’s founding vision; the ways its statutes, educational philosophy, and early institutional documents defined its academic, religious, and societal mission; the effects of leadership succession and changing organizational circumstances; and the trajectories of different educational and institutional initiatives. Particular attention is given to theology and spiritual care, Islamic languages and cultures, Islamic arts and media, teacher education, and initiatives related to wider societal and professional development. The study also considers what these trajectories reveal about the relationship between founding visions and long-term institutional continuity and change.

The article makes two related conceptual contributions. First, it introduces the concept of the comprehensive Islamic university as an analytical framework for understanding an institutional vision that combines religious scholarship with scientific inquiry, professional education, citizenship formation, cultural engagement, and societal contribution. In the case examined here, the comprehensive character of the founding vision does not imply that all academic fields were simultaneously developed or successfully institutionalized. Rather, it refers to the broader conception of the university as an educational institution whose responsibilities extend across multiple religious, intellectual, educational, cultural, and societal domains.

Second, the article develops a Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model to explain the uneven development of these different institutional aspirations. The model distinguishes four pathways: realized, interrupted, re-activated, and projected. Realized pathways are those that achieved sustained institutional continuity and academic recognition. Interrupted pathways refer to initiatives that were established or substantially developed but later ceased to function as independent areas of institutional activity. Re-activated pathways are aspirations present in the founding vision that remained dormant or incomplete for a period before acquiring renewed institutional expression. Projected pathways refer to developmental ambitions that formed part of the broader vision but did not achieve full institutional realization. This framework is informed by wider scholarship on vision, leadership, and institutional development (Kakabadse, Kakabadse, and Lee-Davies 2005), while the four-pathway typology developed here is derived from the historical analysis of the IUASR case.

The significance of this approach extends beyond the history of a single university. By reconstructing the relationship between founding aspirations and institutional outcomes over nearly three decades, the study contributes to broader discussions concerning institutional continuity, leadership succession, organizational adaptation, academic diversification, and the long-term development of faith-based higher education. The IUASR case demonstrates that institutional continuity does not necessarily require the preservation of identical organizational forms. Different components of a founding vision may develop at different moments and under different conditions, while still remaining connected to a broader set of institutional purposes (Yılmaz 2026c).

The analysis consequently advances the argument that the history of IUR/IUASR is best understood not as a sequence of unrelated changes in institutional direction, but as an uneven and cumulative process through which different dimensions of an original educational vision acquired, lost, or regained institutional expression. Theology and spiritual care emerged as the most consolidated pathways; initiatives in languages, cultures, arts, and media were interrupted; teacher education subsequently re-emerged as an accredited pathway; and several wider societal and professional ambitions remained projected or only partially realized. Viewed from this perspective, the diversification represented by the accreditation of teacher education in 2026 reflects continuity with an educational vision articulated at the institution’s establishment rather than a fundamental departure from it.

By combining historical reconstruction with conceptual analysis, this study therefore seeks to broaden the analytical perspective through which Islamic higher education in Europe is examined. Rather than treating Islamic universities primarily as providers of religious leadership formation, it considers how wider founding visions can shape institutional possibilities across changing generations of leadership, regulatory environments, and societal circumstances.

2. Materials and Methods

2.1. Research Design

This study employs a qualitative historical case study design to examine the development of the Islamic University of Rotterdam (IUR), today known as the Islamic University of Applied Sciences Rotterdam (IUASR), between 1997 and 2026. The research combines historical reconstruction with conceptual analysis in order to investigate how the university’s founding vision was articulated, interpreted, preserved, interrupted, and re-activated across successive phases of institutional development.

The case was selected because IUASR represents a distinctive example of independent Islamic higher education in Europe and because its institutional history is documented through an unusually rich body of founding documents, curriculum materials, accreditation records, policy documents, and archival sources. The study does not seek statistical generalization. Instead, it aims at analytical generalization by using the IUASR case to explore broader questions concerning founding visions, institutional continuity, leadership succession, academic diversification, and long-term organizational development. The unit of analysis is the institutional development of IUR/IUASR over the period 1997–2026. Particular attention is given to the relationship between the institution’s founding aspirations and the subsequent trajectories of its principal academic and societal initiatives.

2.2. Source Materials

The analysis is based primarily on original institutional documents produced during the university’s formative years. The core primary sources include the founding statutes adopted on 21 November 1997 (IUR 1997), materials related to the founding conference held at Erasmus University Rotterdam on 8 December 1997, including the founding discourse of Dr. S.T.K. Damra (Damra 1998), the university’s early vision and mission statements, and the study guides issued for the academic years 1998–1999, 1999–2000, and 2000–2001 (IUR 1998, 1999, 2000).

These materials were used to reconstruct the intellectual, educational, religious, and societal aspirations that informed the establishment of the institution. Particular attention was paid to statements concerning higher education, scientific research, religious scholarship, citizenship, professional formation, cultural engagement, social responsibility, and the relationship between Islamic and scientific knowledge.

The primary sources were supplemented by accreditation decisions issued by the Accreditation Organisation of the Netherlands and Flanders (NVAO) concerning Islamic Spiritual Care, Islamic Theology, and Primary Teacher Education (NVAO 2010, 2013, 2026a, 2026b), as well as parliamentary documents, policy records, institutional reports, public statements, media interviews, newspaper publications, and relevant scholarly literature. These additional materials were used to trace later institutional developments, leadership transitions, regulatory recognition, programme continuity, and changes in the university’s public and organizational environment.

The documentary corpus was assembled purposively according to its relevance to the study’s central research question. Documents were included when they provided evidence concerning one or more of the following dimensions: (1) the articulation of the founding vision; (2) the establishment or discontinuation of academic or institutional initiatives; (3) leadership and organizational transitions; (4) accreditation and academic recognition; and (5) the re-emergence or transformation of earlier institutional aspirations.

2.3. Analytical Procedure

The study uses a process-tracing approach to follow the development of key components of the founding vision from the establishment of the university in 1997 through subsequent phases of institutional evolution. Process tracing is particularly suitable for this study because the objective is not only to identify institutional outcomes but also to reconstruct the sequence of developments through which particular aspirations were maintained, modified, suspended, or reintroduced over time (Beşgül 2022; Wadeson, Monzani, and Aston 2020).

The analysis proceeded in three stages. First, the founding documents and early institutional records were examined to identify the principal dimensions of the university’s original vision. These included religious scholarship and leadership formation, scientific and intellectual development, citizenship and social responsibility, cultural engagement, education, and broader societal and professional development.

Second, the subsequent development of each of these dimensions was traced chronologically through institutional documents, accreditation records, policy sources, and other documentary evidence. Attention was paid to periods of continuity, interruption, organizational change, and renewed development.

Third, the identified trajectories were compared in order to determine recurring patterns in the relationship between founding aspirations and institutional outcomes. This comparative analysis led to the development of four analytical categories: realized, interrupted, re-activated, and projected pathways. These categories form the basis of the Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model developed in this article.

A pathway was classified as realized when an aspiration achieved sustained institutional continuity, organizational consolidation, and academic or professional recognition. A pathway was classified as interrupted when an initiative was formally established or substantially developed but subsequently ceased to function as an independent field of institutional activity. A pathway was classified as re-activated when an aspiration identifiable in the founding vision remained dormant or incomplete for a significant period before later acquiring renewed institutional expression. A pathway was classified as projected when an aspiration was explicitly articulated or institutionally planned but did not achieve full and sustained implementation.

The purpose of these categories is analytical rather than evaluative. They do not rank programmes according to success or failure but describe different modes through which elements of a founding vision developed over time.

2.4. Reliability, Scope, and Limitations

To strengthen the reliability of the historical reconstruction, claims concerning major institutional developments were cross-checked, where possible, across different types of documentary evidence. Founding documents were compared with later institutional records, accreditation decisions, parliamentary materials, policy documents, and published scholarly sources. This source triangulation was used to distinguish between formally documented institutional developments, projected initiatives, and retrospective interpretations.

The study nevertheless has several limitations. First, it is based on a single institutional case and is therefore not intended to support statistical generalization to all Islamic higher education institutions in Europe. Second, the availability of documentary materials varies across different phases of the university’s history. The founding period is particularly well documented, whereas some later internal organizational developments are less extensively represented in publicly accessible sources. Third, part of the historical evidence derives from institutional archival collections that are not fully available through public repositories.

These limitations do not prevent historical analysis but require careful distinction between documented institutional developments and broader interpretive conclusions. For this reason, the analysis prioritizes contemporaneous primary sources where available and uses later secondary sources primarily for contextualization and corroboration.

2.5. Ethical Considerations

This research is based exclusively on documentary and historical sources and did not involve human participants, animals, medical records, interventions, surveys, or interviews. Institutional review board or ethics committee approval was therefore not required.

3. Results

3.1. Reconstructing the Founding Vision of a Comprehensive Islamic University

3.1.1. The Founding Statutes and Institutional Mission

The Islamic University of Rotterdam was formally established on 21 November 1997 through the adoption of its founding statutes (IUR 1997). These statutes indicate that the institution was conceived as more than a centre for imam training or religious instruction. While Islamic scholarship and the education of religious professionals constituted important elements of its mission, the founding document articulated a broader academic and societal agenda encompassing higher education, scientific research, professional development, and contribution to a multicultural society. Academic programmes were expected to be grounded in an Islamic worldview while also contributing to knowledge production, professional expertise, and social well-being (IUR 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000).

The statutes also linked education to wider social objectives. Higher education was presented as a means of preparing individuals for constructive participation in society while fostering intellectual, cultural, and professional development. Education, research, professional formation, and societal contribution were therefore treated as interconnected dimensions of the institutional mission. The documentary evidence indicates that the founding vision extended beyond religious leadership formation and envisaged a university serving both Muslim communities and wider European society through education, research, and public engagement.

3.1.2. Founding Discourse: Muslim Citizenship and Social Responsibility

The broader intellectual orientation of the university was articulated during its founding conference, held at Erasmus University Rotterdam on 8 December 1997. The conference was organized under the title Islam in the Netherlands, Islam in Europe: Islamic Scholarship and Potentials for Social Development, while the keynote address delivered by founder and first rector Dr. S.T.K. Damra focused on Muslims as citizens of European societies (Damra 1998). These themes positioned the university’s mission within questions of citizenship, scholarship, and social development rather than religious instruction alone.

A central element of Damra’s founding discourse was Muslim citizenship. Responsible citizenship was presented as an integral component of Islamic identity and as an important objective of higher education. Graduates were expected to participate constructively in European societies while remaining grounded in Islamic ethical principles (Damra 1997, 1998). This responsibility was not confined to Muslim communities. Themes such as social justice, care for vulnerable groups, mutual respect, and solidarity were presented as values with relevance to society as a whole.

The scope of the founding discourse further illustrates the breadth of the university’s intended social engagement. Issues including education, ageing, healthcare, labour market participation, poverty, social exclusion, and community development were addressed as legitimate areas of academic inquiry and public concern. These subjects were treated as part of the university’s broader educational and societal responsibilities rather than as peripheral themes.

The relationship between religion and scientific inquiry constituted another important component of the founding discourse. Damra argued that the pursuit of knowledge, research, and intellectual development was compatible with Islamic intellectual traditions and that Islamic and Western scholarly traditions could be approached as complementary rather than mutually exclusive. Religious leadership formation was thus situated within a wider framework incorporating citizenship, social responsibility, scientific inquiry, education, and public service (Damra 1997, 2001).

3.1.3. Educational Philosophy and the Comprehensive University Vision

The available documentary evidence reveals a consistent educational philosophy connecting Islam, knowledge, education, citizenship, and societal development (Damra 1997; IUR 1998, 1999, 2000; Yılmaz 2026b). Across these sources, knowledge was presented as having a social purpose. Religious formation, academic development, and public engagement were treated as mutually reinforcing components of a single educational mission (Abolbashari 1998; Elihami, Lin, and Biqing 2025).

At the epistemological level, the documents emphasized the relationship between revelation and reason and presented Qur’anic and scientific knowledge as complementary sources of understanding (Erdemci 2006; Söylemez 2002). The university’s educational philosophy also sought to connect Islamic intellectual traditions with the historical, political, and social realities of Europe. Graduates were expected to acquire religious knowledge alongside the intellectual and professional competencies required to function within multicultural and multireligious societies.

The documentary evidence therefore supports the identification of what this study terms a comprehensive Islamic university vision. Within this conception, theology and chaplaincy formed important parts of the institution but did not exhaust its intended academic purpose. The founding materials also identified ambitions relating to scientific research, education, culture, citizenship, social development, and public service. Later initiatives in theology and chaplaincy, Islamic Languages and Cultures, Islamic Arts and Media, and teacher education can therefore be traced to different dimensions of this broader institutional orientation.

This orientation is consistent with wider interpretations of Islamic intellectual history that emphasize interaction between multiple fields of knowledge and engagement with broader intellectual traditions rather than institutional isolation (Al-Attas 1980; Bilgrami and Ashraf 1985; Hamidullah 1995; Macit 2019). In the case of IUR, however, the significance of this approach lies primarily in the extent to which it was embedded in the institution’s own founding documents and early academic initiatives.

3.2. Multiple Pathways of Institutional Development, 1997–2026

During the university’s formative years, the founding vision began to acquire institutional form through multiple academic initiatives and organizational structures. Early documents indicate that the founders did not envisage a single-purpose institution devoted exclusively to imam training. Instead, several academic and societal domains were developed or planned simultaneously (IUR 1998, 1999, 2000).

Three principal academic pathways became visible between 1997 and 2001. The first centred on religious leadership formation through Islamic theology and spiritual care within the Faculty of Islamic Theology. The second involved cultural and intellectual development through the Faculty of Islamic Languages and Civilizations. The third extended the university’s academic profile into culture, communication, and public discourse through the Faculty of Islamic Arts and Media. Plans were also developed for an Islamic Social Gerontology Institute (ISGEN), reflecting ambitions in ageing, health, and wider societal development. This initiative was planned in collaboration with the prominent Turkish gerontologist Dr. Kemal Aydın, whose work focused on ageing, elderly care, and the needs of Turkish communities in Europe (Yılmaz 2026a).

These initiatives developed unevenly. Some achieved long-term continuity and academic recognition, while others were discontinued or remained incomplete. The historical evidence therefore reveals different trajectories of institutional realization within the same founding project.

3.2.1. Realized Pathway: Theology and Chaplaincy

Among the initiatives developed during the formative period, theology and chaplaincy became the most enduring areas of institutional activity. Both fields responded to identifiable needs within the Dutch context, including demand for religious professionals capable of working in mosques, educational settings, healthcare institutions, prisons, and other public organizations. Contemporary debates concerning the institutionalization of Islam in the Netherlands similarly highlighted the need for religious professionals able to operate within European social and institutional settings (Boender 2006; Shadid and Koningsveld 1996; Sunier and Van Kuijeren 2010).

The programmes sought to combine Islamic scholarship with knowledge of contemporary Dutch and European society. Their educational orientation therefore extended beyond classical religious learning to include engagement with multicultural environments, public institutions, and the evolving needs of Muslim communities.

Over time, theology and chaplaincy acquired a stable institutional position. They achieved continuity, organizational consolidation, academic recognition, and subsequent accreditation. Within the pathway framework developed in this study, they therefore constitute the clearest example of a realized pathway. Their consolidation also provided an institutional basis for later programme diversification and academic expansion.

3.2.2. Interrupted Pathways: Languages and Cultures, and Arts and Media

Alongside theology and chaplaincy, the founders developed additional academic initiatives designed to broaden the university’s profile. The Faculty of Islamic Languages and Cultures represented an effort to incorporate language, history, culture, and civilizational studies into the academic structure. These fields were viewed as means of connecting Islamic intellectual traditions with contemporary European realities.

The Faculty of Islamic Arts and Media, established in 2001, further extended this diversification into culture, communication, creativity, and public discourse. Its establishment reflected an understanding of Islamic higher education that included cultural production and communication alongside theology and religious education. The institutional importance attached to the initiative was reflected in the appointment of Dr. Osama Elkaffash as Dean and in the participation of Deputy Minister of Education Prof. Dr. Raja Sabbah as a keynote speaker at the faculty’s inaugural meeting.

Neither faculty, however, achieved the level of long-term institutional consolidation attained by theology and chaplaincy. Following the departure of Damra in 2001 and the transition to a second generation of leadership, these initiatives gradually lost institutional priority and were ultimately discontinued (Yılmaz 2026a). They are therefore classified in this study as interrupted pathways: initiatives that reached a concrete level of institutional development but did not continue as sustained academic fields.

Their interruption does not diminish their relevance for reconstructing the founding vision. Archival evidence indicates that they formed part of broader ambitions extending into educational sciences, social sciences, social services, economics, and health-related fields. Among these aspirations was the idea of establishing a medical faculty capable of bringing classical Islamic scientific traditions, including the legacy associated with Ibn Sina (Avicenna), into dialogue with contemporary medical knowledge.

3.2.3. Leadership Transition and Changes in Pathway Prioritization

The departure of founder and first rector Dr. Damra in 2001 marked a significant transition in the institutional development of the university. Under the subsequent rectorship of Prof. Dr. Ahmet Akgündüz, who entered the Dutch institutional context with less prior experience of its regulatory and societal environment, the university moved into a period of adjustment accompanied by several critical developments. Institutional priorities increasingly shifted towards consolidation, theology and chaplaincy, and the pursuit of academic recognition. As a result, some of the broader initiatives associated with the founding period received less institutional emphasis, while theology and chaplaincy became the dominant academic pathway, supported by continuing societal demand and prospects for formal recognition.

By contrast, Islamic Languages and Cultures and Islamic Arts and Media gradually ceased to develop as independent academic fields. Their interruption appears to have reflected a combination of organizational constraints and changing institutional priorities. The leadership transition therefore altered the relative emphasis placed on different components of the founding vision rather than bringing the broader vision itself to an end.

The subsequent history further demonstrates that interruption did not necessarily imply permanent disappearance. Some elements of the original educational vision remained dormant and later re-emerged in different institutional forms during the third generation, with renewed academic diversification culminating in the introduction of teacher education under the university’s third rector, Drs. Emrullah Akgündüz.

3.2.4. Re-Activated Pathway: Teacher Education

The accreditation of the Primary Teacher Education programme (PABO) in 2026 marked the first formally accredited diversification beyond IUASR’s established fields of Islamic Theology and Islamic Spiritual Care (NVAO 2026a, 2026b). Historical documents indicate that education had formed part of the university’s broader founding vision from the outset, alongside scientific research, professional formation, citizenship, social responsibility, and contribution to a multicultural society (Damra 1998; IUR 1998, 1999, 2000).

Unlike earlier diversification initiatives in languages, cultures, arts, and media, teacher education achieved formal accreditation and a recognized position within the university’s academic portfolio. Within the analytical framework developed in this study, it therefore represents a re-activated pathway: an aspiration present in the founding vision that remained dormant for an extended period before acquiring renewed institutional expression under the third generation of leadership.

The introduction of PABO thus reflects both diversification and continuity. It broadened the university’s academic profile while simultaneously giving institutional form to an educational orientation that can be traced to its founding period.

3.2.5. Projected Pathway: Societal, Health, and Professional Development

The founding vision also included a number of initiatives that were articulated or planned but did not achieve sustained institutional realization. These ambitions extended into social sciences, health-related studies, gerontology, economics, and broader forms of societal engagement. The planned Islamic Social Gerontology Institute (ISGEN) provides a particularly clear example of this orientation, linking the university’s educational mission to questions of ageing, elderly care, health, and social development.

Within the analytical framework developed in this study, these initiatives are classified as projected pathways. Unlike interrupted pathways, they did not develop into fully institutionalized or sustained academic fields. Rather, they remained expressions of the broader institutional vision whose organizational realization was incomplete or did not proceed beyond the planning and developmental stage.

3.2.6. Summary of Pathways of Vision Realization

The different trajectories identified in the historical analysis are summarized in Table 2. The table distinguishes between realized, interrupted, re-activated, and projected pathways and identifies the principal institutional examples associated with each category.

4. Discussion

The historical development of the Islamic University of Rotterdam/IUASR between 1997 and 2026 indicates that the relationship between founding visions and institutional development cannot be adequately explained through a simple linear model of continuity or abandonment. The findings instead point to a more differentiated pattern in which various components of the founding vision followed distinct trajectories under changing organizational, leadership, regulatory, and societal conditions.

The analysis presented in this study suggests that the university’s development can be understood through a Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model. Rather than producing a single institutional trajectory, the founding vision generated several interconnected lines of development characterized by different degrees and forms of institutional realization.

The first and most fully realized pathway concerned religious leadership formation through theology, imam education, and spiritual care. These fields achieved continuity, organizational consolidation, accreditation, and academic recognition and consequently became the university’s most stable areas of activity. Their development demonstrates how one component of a founding vision can acquire sustained institutional form across successive generations of leadership.

A second pathway concerned cultural and civilizational development. Initiatives such as the Faculty of Islamic Languages and Cultures and the Faculty of Islamic Arts and Media were formally established and reflected important dimensions of the broader founding project. Neither, however, achieved long-term institutional consolidation (IUR 1998, 1999, 2000; Yılmaz 2026a). They therefore represent interrupted pathways: aspirations that acquired concrete organizational expression but later ceased to develop as independent academic fields.

A third pathway concerned educational development and teacher formation. Education had been present in the university’s founding philosophy from the outset, yet it remained without comparable accredited programme-level expression for much of the institution’s history. The accreditation of Primary Teacher Education (PABO) in 2026 therefore represents a re-activated pathway. In this case, an aspiration embedded in the founding vision remained dormant for an extended period before acquiring renewed and formally recognized institutional expression.

A fourth dimension concerned broader societal, health, and professional development. Issues such as ageing, healthcare, poverty, labour market participation, social inclusion, and community well-being featured prominently in the founding discourse. These ambitions were also reflected in specific institutional initiatives. One notable example was the planned establishment of the Islamic Institute for Gerontology Netherlands (ISGEN), envisaged as a collaborative initiative involving the university, the Dutch Islamic Elderly Union (NISBO), and Turkish gerontologist Dr. Kemal Aydın. Aydın was among those who drew attention to the ageing of Turkish communities in Europe and to emerging care needs. His collaboration with Damra aimed to establish a scientific research unit within the university. Following the 2001 leadership transition, however, the initiative was not further institutionalized. Within the framework proposed here, such ambitions are best understood as projected pathways: initiatives that were articulated and partially developed but did not achieve sustained institutional implementation.

Figure 1. The Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model: IUR/IUASR (1997–2026).

Figure 1. The Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model: IUR/IUASR (1997–2026).

Collectively, these pathways support the argument that founding visions should not be treated as fixed institutional blueprints that are either implemented or abandoned. Rather, they may function as long-term frameworks capable of generating multiple trajectories of development. The realization of each trajectory depends on factors including organizational capacity, leadership choices, resource availability, academic legitimacy, accreditation requirements, regulatory environments, and wider societal conditions.

This interpretation also helps explain why institutional continuity does not necessarily require the preservation of identical organizational forms. Continuity may instead operate at the level of underlying purpose, educational orientation, or institutional meaning. In this respect, the IUASR case suggests that an institutional vision may persist even when particular organizational expressions disappear, provided that related aspirations later re-emerge in new forms.

The model therefore distinguishes between continuity of purpose and continuity of form. Theology and chaplaincy represent both continuity of purpose and continuity of institutional form. Teacher education illustrates continuity of purpose combined with discontinuity in organizational expression, followed by later re-activation. Languages, cultures, arts, and media demonstrate that formal establishment does not necessarily result in enduring institutional consolidation. Projected initiatives such as ISGEN, meanwhile, demonstrate that components of a founding vision may influence institutional imagination even when they do not reach full implementation.

These findings contribute to broader discussions on Islamic higher education in Europe. Existing scholarship has concentrated largely on imam training, Islamic theology, accreditation, state–religion relations, and the institutionalization of Islam (Altinyelken 2021; Boender 2006; Rath 1996; Shadid and Koningsveld 1996; Sözeri, Altinyelken, and Volman 2019; Sunier 2025). These remain central dimensions of the field, but the IUASR case indicates that independent Islamic higher education institutions may also be shaped by broader educational, cultural, scientific, and societal aspirations extending beyond religious leadership formation.

The concept of the comprehensive Islamic university is intended to capture this broader institutional orientation. It does not imply that all academic fields must be developed simultaneously or that a university must resemble a conventional comprehensive research university in organizational scale. Rather, it refers to an educational vision in which religious scholarship is situated within a wider framework encompassing knowledge production, professional education, citizenship, culture, social responsibility, and public engagement.

The Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model complements this concept by explaining how such a broad institutional vision may evolve over time. Different dimensions may become realized, interrupted, re-activated, or remain projected depending on historical circumstances. The model therefore shifts attention away from binary interpretations of institutional success and failure and towards the temporal and differentiated realization of founding aspirations.

The relevance of this framework potentially extends beyond IUASR. Independent Islamic and other faith-based higher education institutions frequently operate in dynamic environments shaped by accreditation systems, leadership transitions, societal expectations, changing educational needs, and limited organizational resources. In such contexts, founding visions may continue to influence institutional possibilities long after their original formulation. Their realization may occur cumulatively across different phases rather than through uninterrupted expansion.

The findings also indicate that institutional renewal does not necessarily require the abandonment of foundational principles. Earlier aspirations can acquire new relevance under different historical conditions and may be expressed through new organizational forms. From this perspective, the accreditation of teacher education in 2026 represents more than programme diversification. It provides evidence that a component of the university’s early educational orientation could re-emerge after a prolonged period of limited institutional expression.

The IUASR case therefore illustrates how institutional continuity and institutional change can coexist. Its development is not best described as a movement from one mission to another, but as a process in which different components of an original educational vision acquired varying degrees of institutional expression across successive periods. This interpretation offers a more nuanced framework for understanding long-term development within Islamic higher education and highlights the analytical importance of founding visions in studies of institutional continuity, diversification, and resilience.

5. Conclusions

This study examined the historical development of the Islamic University of Rotterdam/IUASR between 1997 and 2026 through the relationship between its founding vision and subsequent institutional evolution. Drawing on founding statutes, conference discourse, curriculum documents, accreditation records, institutional materials, and other historical sources, the analysis shows that the institution was conceived as a broader educational project rather than exclusively as an imam-training centre or specialized theological institute.

The founding vision combined religious scholarship with scientific inquiry, professional education, citizenship formation, cultural engagement, social responsibility, and public contribution. This broader orientation is conceptualized in this article as a comprehensive Islamic university.

The subsequent institutional history of IUR/IUASR demonstrates that the realization of this vision was uneven. Theology and chaplaincy achieved continuity, academic recognition, and accreditation and therefore represent realized pathways. Languages, cultures, arts, and media acquired institutional form but were later interrupted. Teacher education remained dormant as an institutional aspiration for an extended period before re-emerging as an accredited programme in 2026. Other ambitions relating to social, health, and professional development remained projected or only partially realized.

To explain these differences, the study developed the Multiple Pathways of Vision Realization Model, distinguishing between realized, interrupted, re-activated, and projected pathways. The model suggests that founding visions may continue to influence institutional development without being implemented in a uniform or linear manner. Different components may acquire institutional expression at different times and under different organizational, regulatory, and societal conditions.

The accreditation of Primary Teacher Education in 2026 is particularly significant within this framework. Rather than representing a fundamental departure from the institution’s earlier mission, it can be interpreted as the re-activation of an educational orientation already present in the founding vision. It therefore reflects both academic diversification and institutional continuity.

More broadly, the study demonstrates that Islamic higher education institutions in Europe should not be analysed exclusively through theology, imam training, accreditation, or state–religion relations. Attention to founding visions can reveal wider educational and societal aspirations whose influence may extend across successive generations of leadership and several decades of institutional development.

The IUASR case ultimately illustrates how a broad institutional vision may persist through changing historical circumstances, even when its individual components follow different trajectories. Institutional continuity may therefore reside not only in the preservation of organizational forms but also in the continued re-interpretation and realization of underlying educational purposes.