AHMED SALIM, WASHINGTON CLASS, 2012 BY TERRY CARELLA
Yet the distance traveled and the years in between haven’t diminished Salim’s cultural pride, and the values of his upbringing. Those are lessons he has never forgotten.
At just two years of age Ahmed Salim moved with his family from their homeland in Pakistan to the United States, into the south suburbs of Chicago. Salim’s parents wanted what every other immigrant family wanted – a better life for their children.
Work hard. Get educated. Give back.
AHMED SALIM WASHINGTON CLASS, 2012
His parents’ mantra, ‘work hard, get educated, and give back,’ has guided and given him direction all along the way. “My parents stressed the importance of working hard and giving back to our community,” remembered Salim. “My father would tell me that by helping my neighbors and those in need, you will also help the community prosper. That made sense to me.”
What also stood out in Salim’s mind was the importance of education. “My father would say, ‘If you go to school and work hard, you will get your opportunity.’” It was never a matter of whether Salim would go to college, but where and when. So after graduating from his high school, Salim enrolled at DePaul University. Chicago was home for him, and he was very much attracted to the ideals of the university, and its curriculum which incorporated service learning partnerships throughout the Chicago area. Then after college in 2006, Salim and his brother started a business together.
DECIDING TO GO TO LAW SCHOOL “Going to law school was actually something I had always wanted to do,” explained Salim, “but I thought I should get some work experience before I made the next step.” Not long after the two started their business, Salim began to notice issues with the economy and what looked like an oncoming recession. “Business started decreasing. People had less money to spend. I realized fairly quickly that I needed to have something I could fall back on – a career that would be stable for the rest of my life.” For Salim, that was the study of law. “I had always thought of law school growing up, and I felt it would be a natural transition to go from a business background to law school – especially with the state of the world at that time.” But going to law school wasn’t just an economic decision for Salim.
“Law was more a passion for me,” said Salim. “I’ve always had the desire to help people, and when you look at something like law versus business, I felt like a legal background would allow me to do more, and give me the base needed to make real change and impact others’ lives.” (continued)
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