Halima JoAnn Haymaker is a Sufi student in the Uwaiysi order and a member of the International Association of Sufism, headquartered in Novato, California. She has the title of Sheikha and has been appointed to teach Sufism. She studied at Harvard and the University of Pennsylvania where she is Ph.D. abd. She has been a college teacher, legal editor, and fund raising consultant to non-profit organizations.