Koya University Professor Completes U.S. State Department Program on Religious Freedom

Prof. Dr. Haidar Lashkry Khidr, Professor of Religious History at the History Department of the Faculty of Education at Koya University, participated in the International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) of the U.S. State Department focused on promoting religious freedom from July 26 to August 16, 2025.

The IVLP, one of the State Department's flagship exchange initiatives, enabled Prof. Dr. Haidar Lashkry  and 30 other international researchers and religious leaders to participate in this specialized experience in the United States through official invitation from the U.S. State Department.

City Visits and Academic Activities

During their participation, the delegation visited several major American cities, including Washington D.C., Milwaukee, Detroit, Salt Lake City, and Dallas. These visits aimed at direct engagement with dialogue and deliberation on the program's core themes: religious tolerance, interfaith cooperation, and global security.

In Milwaukee, the delegation held high-level meetings with the Milwaukee Jewish Federation, Marquette University Campus Ministry, and the Greater Milwaukee Interfaith Conference. They also visited Sikh temples in Wisconsin to understand religious recovery following the 2012 attacks.

In Dallas, the delegation met with domestic religious organizations, educational leaders, and civil institutions to examine how interfaith cooperation and religious freedom function in education, public life, and community development.

About the IVLP Program

The International Visitor Leadership Program, established in 1940, is the State Department's premier initiative for international coordination and mutual understanding on global issues.

Koya University, within the framework of the objectives of its "INTERNATIONALIZATION AND GLOBAL VISIBILITY " pillar of the Strategic Plan 2023-2027, encourages its faculty members to participate in international programs and activities.

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Koya University (KOU) is located in the city of Koya (Koy Sanjaq) which is 1.0 hr drive to the East of the Kurdistan Region capital Erbil (Arbil, Hewlér) in Kurdistan Region of F.R. Iraq. It is on the foothills of a beautiful high mountain. Its campus has been carefully laid out to embrace the beautiful mountainous nature.

There are 4 Faculties and 2 Schools in KOU; Faculty of Engineering (FENG), Faculty of Science and Health (FSCH), Faculty of Education (FEDU), Faculty of Humanities and Social Silences (FHSS), Shcool of Physical Education (SPHE) and School of Medicine (SMED).

Also, there are two research centers; Genome Center and Malai Gawra Center. Moreover, at KOU there is an English Language Center (BELC) at KOU has been opened with the sponsorship of IREX and American embassy in Baghdad as well as with the support of Spring International Language Center of The University of Arkansas. KOU has two Scientific Journals; ARO-The Scientific Journal of Koya University, which is indexed by Clarivate Analytics (ESCI), and Koya University Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences (KUJHSS). KOU is a proactive member of Erasmus/ Marhaba Project and Erasmus+.

KOU signed many Memorandum of Understandings (MoU) with many International Universities, e.g., The University of Arkansas (June 2015). The Lulea University in Sweden (April 2014), The University of Nottingham in the UK, The University of Buckingham in the UK (Oct 2008), Belkin University in Turkey (Sep 2009) The University of Greenwich in the UK, Cihan University-Erbil (2021) and Tishk International University (2021).

Koya University is a memebr of The Association of Arab Universities and the International Association of Universities.

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