MCDR Welcomes Saadia Ahmed
as Inaugural Executive Director
Saadia Ahmed is a nationally recognized community leader, nonprofit strategist, and faith-rooted peacebuilder whose career intersects advocacy, scholarship, and social change.
She brings a foundational belief that conflict resolution is not merely a legal process, but a moral one, grounded in spirituality and the pursuit of justice tempered by compassion. This orientation makes her uniquely suited to lead an organization committed to faith-inspired, community-centered dispute resolution.
Her organizational leadership spans both the local and national stage. Saadia has founded and shaped several high-impact nonprofits in the Dallas/Fort Worth area and beyond, and has served as a nonprofit consultant guiding organizations in capacity building, cross-cultural coalition development, and translating mission into measurable outcomes. She currently holds board positions with Breakthrough T1D (formerly the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation), 200 Muslim Women Who Care, and the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding (ISPU), organizations at the forefront of health equity, civic engagement, and research.
Saadia’s academic credentials are equally distinguished. She holds a Master of Divinity in Islamic Chaplaincy from Chicago Theological Seminary in partnership with Bayan Islamic Graduate School, one of the nation’s premier institutions for training ethical Muslim leaders, and a Bachelor of Arts in International Studies with a minor in French from Austin College, where she also completed the Posey Leadership Institute. Her formation is further deepened by an Abrahamic Traditions Fellowship at Chicago Theological Seminary, a Lead by Faith Fellowship with One America Movement, and a Spiritual Entrepreneurship Certification from Columbia University Business School through GLEAN Network’s START Fellowship. This breadth of training equips her to lead with intellectual rigor, interfaith fluency, and pastoral grounding.
Saadia is multilingual and meets people where they are, in language, in culture, and in the fullness of their experience.
The MCDR Board is comprised of experienced attorneys, non-attorneys, trained arbitrators, mediators, and social entrepreneurs who are committed to the mission of advancing alternative dispute resolution and bringing peace to our communities.
The MCDR Board is focused on continually growing the capabilities of our services and building strong relationships with our neighbors, clients, donors, and affiliates.

Saadia Ahmed

Mahir Nisar

Ammad Sheikh

Aisha U-Kiu

Razan Hamideh

Samaiya Mushtaq

Salman Ravala
