Our Founder

Mahenaz Mahmud

Sabeen’s mother, Mahenaz, has worked with children and adults since 1979, teaching, developing curricula and learning resources in urban and rural Pakistan. She initiated innovative Early Years projects, research and advocacy in the public and private sectors resulting in Pakistan’s first National ECE Curriculum in collaboration with the Ministry of Education. Currently, as Academic Advisor, PECHS Girls’ School, one of her favourite roles is to provide a safe space for students to come and talk through their social, emotional and academic difficulties.

Our Valued Advisors

  • Dr. Faiza Mushtaq is the Dean and Executive Director of the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture in Karachi. In addition to her academic leadership responsibilities, she is also a researcher, writer and teacher. She particularly enjoys working with students on academic as well as extra-curricular initiatives that allow them to develop their abilities and enhance their well-being. She has a PhD in Sociology from Northwestern University in the US.

  • Prof Enam is a US Board-certified Neurosurgeon, Professor of Neurosurgery and Chair, Department of Surgery at the AKU Karachi. He has a Specialist Certification in Neurosurgery from Canada, FRCS from Canada, Ireland and Glasgow and a Fellowship of the American College of Surgeons. He is also an examiner and advisory faculty member of the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Pakistan, and a Ph.D. supervisor for the HEC. He has been awarded numerous accolades and honors for his work in the US and Pakistan. With a strong interest in science research, he is actively involved in many clinical and basic science research projects. He has authored more than 300 manuscripts, editorials, and articles. His primary focus is the promotion of Neuroscience and Neuro-Oncology in Pakistan

  • Nisha holds a Masters in Counselling from the UK and is also a fully trained Clinical Supervisor. Her training in Tension and Trauma Releasing Exercises (TRE) and Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) has led her to work using a trauma-informed approach with her clients. Nisha has been awarded accreditation with the British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy (BACP) and she is currently based in London working with the Priory Group, a leading Private Mental Healthcare provider in the UK.

  • Seema is the Principal of the PECHS Girls’ School. She is committed to continuing and taking forward her grandmother’s vision and value system. Her grandmother, Begum Amina Majeed Malik (a.k.a. Baaji) established the school in 1955, to give our girls an education which draws on the best from both the East & West, and this is what Seema aims to do. Seema served as the Director of the Teachers’ Resource Centre (TRC) from 1991-2013. Under her leadership and vision, TRC grew and expanded in many directions, notable among these was successfully pioneering partnerships between NGOs and the public sector education system.

  • Natasha Jafri is an experienced and qualified counsellor, child protection social worker and teacher. She is registered with the National Counselling Society (UK) and Social Work England. Natasha works with individuals, couples, families and groups; across cultures and in diverse contexts, including schools, health and social care, as well as her own private practice. She is an experienced therapist and trainer in a combination of education and mental health related topics including loss & grief; guilt & shame; relationship issues; parenting; stress, anxiety and depression and self evolution.

  • Dr Humair Yusuf is a counselling psychologist and psychotherapist with a private practice in Karachi. As a visiting faculty member at the Department of Social Sciences and Liberal Arts at the Institute of Business Administration he has taught classes on cognitive psychology and cross-cultural psychology. His research interests include historical and cultural representations of mental health and illness along with issues of culture, gender, sexuality, social class, age, disability, and religious beliefs in counselling and psychotherapy.

  • Fatima Haider is a Humanistic Integrative Mental Health Counsellor and Supervisor. She works in private practice and as a psychotherapist at Synapse Neuroscience Center. Fatima has worked extensively in the development sector, and is an active Board of Director/Advisor at Aahung and Ra’ana Liaqat Craftsman Colony. Her areas of expertise include child protection, sexual and reproductive health and women’s empowerment.

Friends of SMF

Marvi Mazhar

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Kiran Ahmed

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Nafisa Rizvi

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Management Team

Najia Sabahat Khan | Project Manager

Najia Khan is working with Mahenaz Mahmud to manage SMF projects. She is a Fulbright alumna with an M.Ed in Educational, School & Counseling Psychology with an emphasis in Counseling Psychology from the University of Missouri-Columbia. She practices at Compassion Couch Psychiatry & Therapy Clinic.

Volunteers

Hibah Abid | Bahria University, Institute of Professional Psychology | March 2024 - Present

Interns

Taimoor Hameed | Habib University | June - July, 2023

Faizan Qureshi | Institute of Business Administration (IBA) | June - July, 2023

Rahma Ali | Institute of Business Administration, Karachi | June - July, 2023

Najia Sabahat Khan | Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS), Alumna | April - July 2021

Daliah Ashraf | Karachi Grammar School (KGS), Class 6 | May - June 2021

Sana Ansari | Karachi Grammar School (KGS), Alumna | January - February, 2021

Nadya Habib | Karachi Grammar School (KGS), Alumna | December, 2020

Uswah Nadeem | Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) | August - November, 2020