The US Department of Education is threatening to revoke a university Middle East studies program's federal funding, alleging -- among other complaints -- that its curriculum fails to address the plight of the region's Christians and Jews.
In a letter to Duke University and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which jointly run the Consortium for Middle East Studies, Assistant Secretary Robert King says the program lacks balance. It offers"few, if any, programs focused on the historic discrimination faced by, and current circumstances of, religious minorities in the Middle East, including Christians, Jews, Baha'is, Yadizis, Kurds, Druze, and others," King writes.
"This lack of balance of perspectives is troubling and strongly suggests that Duke-UNC CMES is not meeting legal requirement" to provide a"full understanding" of the region, the letter states. King also accused the program of failing to adequately prioritize language instruction.Read MoreCNN has reached out for comment to the consortium's centers at both universities, the UNC Center for Middle East and Islamic Studies and the Duke University Middle East Studies Center.
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