Khalid Ahmadzai (’17) first learned about the Clinton School of Public Service as an undergraduate at Arkansas State University Beebe. While attending a Speaker Series lecture in Little Rock, Ahmadzai said he realized that if he ever attended graduate school, he wanted it to be at a place like the Clinton School that allowed for practical, hands-on learning.
Ahmadzai enrolled at the school just a few years later and earned his Master of Public Service in 2017. He is now the Director of Economic Advancement for Canopy Northwest Arkansas, a nonprofit organization based in Fayetteville, Ark., that works to support refugees who are resettling in the Northwest Arkansas community.
Ahmadzai first worked with Canopy NWA as a Clinton School student during the 2016-17 academic year. As part of his final Capstone project, he delivered a strategic plan with a focus on marketing and advocacy on behalf of refugees in Fayetteville area. Ahmadzai designed the plan to help Canopy NWA with its sustainability and capacity building.
“They asked me to help them put together a strategic plan and, lo and behold, that was the beginning of my work with Canopy,”
Ahamdzai spent a year in Afghanistan after graduation before returning to Northwest Arkansas in 2018. Once he knew he would be returning to the Fayetteville area, he reached out to Canopy NWA about volunteering. But the organization had a different idea.
“When I talked to the director about volunteering, she said, ‘Actually, we want you to come back and execute the plan that you wrote for your Capstone,’” Ahmadzai said.
Ahmadzai oversees four key areas for Canopy: early employment, career advancement, entrepreneurship, and immigration services. Additionally, he runs his own social enterprise, Rumi Afghan Rugs, that supports Afghan artisans and carpet weavers.
“It’s just been a fantastic journey, going back to where I started,” Ahmadzai said. “Going all the way back to my first interaction with the Clinton School and how, it has all worked together in a way that is changing the tapestry of Northwest Arkansas.”
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