"Current Issues in the Middle East" will continue with a second session on "Understanding the Origins and Nature of ISIS" led by Samih Baalbaki on Wednesday, Oct. 8, at 4 p.m. in the Recital Hall (Room 152) of the Thomas W. and Robin W. Edwards College of Humanities and Fine Arts at Coastal Carolina University. The public is invited to this free conversation hosted by CCU's Jackson Family Center for Ethics and Values.

Baalbaki, an instructor for the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at CCU, and a group of interested students and faculty members will discuss developments in a rapidly changing Middle East. The discussions are designed to help students and community members think about contemporary political and ethical issues in the Middle East in the larger historical and religious context.

Baalbaki was born and raised in Lebanon and spent the last 17 years of his career in the Middle East before retiring in America in 2012. His legal consulting work took him to more than 20 countries in the Middle East. Baalbaki has gained a deep insight into the dynamics of the Middle East through formal and informal discussions and observation of the business, social and religious aspects of life in the area.

The Edwards College is located at 133 Chanticleer Drive West in Conway. Admission is free, and tickets are not required.

For more information, call the Jackson Center at 843-349-4149.