September 24th, 2003 - As part of the School's involvement in the international visitor program sponsored by the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs at the U.S. Department of State, GSISS hosted scholars from King Abdul Aziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The scholars were on a three-week tour studying the nature of post-secondary religious and public education in the United States. GSISS faculty and staff explained the role of government in higher education; the differences between public and private educational institutions, in terms of accreditation issues, operations, funding and curriculum development; the role of religion and especially Islam as a focus of academic scholarship; and the role of interfaith community-service activities in American life.