2023 Tillman Scholar

Ahmad Nasir

Army
Stanford University
J.D./MBA

“Duty, Honor, Country. I learned these words as a cadet, and they helped me earn a Green Beret. Now, they are my guiding principles for a lifetime of public service.”

Ahmad Nasir is a proud Alaskan, U.S. Army Officer, and Green Beret with nearly a decade of military experience across the special operations and missile defense domains. As a first generation American and the son of immigrants, Ahmad’s family instilled in him a belief that service to their country was his duty given the opportunities they were granted by living in the United States. This sense of service eventually led Ahmad to join the Army. 

Following graduation from West Point (B.S., 2014) and the University of Oxford (M. Phil, 2016), Ahmad volunteered for service as a Special Forces Officer. After two years of training, Ahmad earned his Green Beret and reported to his unit where he took command of a Special Forces A-Team. As a Detachment Commander, Ahmad deployed to Syria on a combat mission in support of Operation Inherent Resolve. Ahmad’s deployment taught him that the lines between government, business, and law are increasingly blurred. Improved governance and sound economic investment were just as important as kinetic operations to crowd out extremism and uplift war-torn communities. 

Ahmad is pursuing a JD/MBA to develop skills and tools at the intersection of law and business that can be leveraged to fight the metaphorical battles of his generation, from climate change, to wealth inequality, and global competition. A JD/MBA will help Ahmad spearhead new initiatives as a business leader or government official in his home state of Alaska where he can mobilize the state’s resources to combat unprecedented demographic and economic challenges.