Basheer and Shakila Ahmed have created a $1 million endowment at The University of Texas at Dallas to establish the Drs. Basheer and Shakila Ahmed Distinguished Chair in Natural Sciences and Mathematics. In recognition of their transformative gift, the Basheer and Shakila Ahmed Auditorium in the Sciences Building was named in their honor at a Sept. 23 event. By creating an endowed distinguished chair, they sought to make a gift that would impact generations. “The main goal is to see that this gift will result in teaching students to become future scientists,” Basheer Ahmed said.