IOWA CITY (AP) - In a front corner of a Schaeffer Hall classroom, University of Iowa junior Sam Dennis sat at a desk scribbling notes about Israeli-U.S. relations during a recent Introduction to Politics in the Middle Eastern World class.

"This is not a political issue. The difference is in the amount of assistance to Israel versus the lack of assistance to inhabitants of Palestinian territories," political science professor Vicki Hesli lectured to the students. "What is important for this class is how Arab states perceive this."

Middle Eastern studies are the most relevant topic in political science today, Dennis said after the class.

"Ignorance and negligence in the situation, there will be a detriment to American society and what is going on," said Dennis, a 23-year-old who has taken three courses in Islamic studies recently.

Interest in the subject appears to be surging, UI officials said. Students want to better understand the culture, politics and religion of a world that the U.S. has been at odds with in recent years, from the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks to wars in Afghanistan and Iraq and potential future conflicts with countries such as Iran and Syria.

Since 9/11, UI has made a concerted effort to meet the growing demand. Officials have increased the opportunities to dive into the subject by offering more courses, hiring more specialized professors, bringing in more guest speakers and creating study abroad opportunities. Hesli, the coordinator and one of 23 faculty in the two-year-old Middle Eastern and Muslim World Studies program, said students want to try to develop their own understanding of why these problems exist rather than relying on media or government accounts.

"I think the student interest has been there since 9/11," Hesli said. "The university is finally responding. The students see a particular event, whether it be 9/11 or construction of an embassy in Kenya, and they want to know why did that happen."

Universities have a duty to build understanding in times like these, Hesli said.

First, universities need to increase courses in the curriculum. Second, scholars must research, write and publish "solid, empirical data" about what is going on in the region. Third, universities must provide more public programming by bringing in more speakers, she said. Students now can use Middle Eastern and Muslim World Studies as an emphasis while pursuing a degree in International Studies. Within this emphasis, there are 23 faculty from disciplines such as history, religion and political sciences. They are encouraged to come up with new courses, but currently are offering 19 on the topics of Middle East, Islam and Arabic languages. Hesli and officials in International Programs said the number of these courses and enrollment in them has dramatically increased, but because faculty are coming and going and courses are constantly changing, they can not quantify the growth.

One number they can track: the number of people who have declared international studies as their major. There were a 169 students when it was first offered in fall 2003, and that number has risen to 500.

William Reisinger is an associate provost and dean of International Programs. He estimated UI has allocated several hundred thousand dollars toward improving Middle Eastern and Muslim studies. Some examples include offering Arabic language courses as a regular part of the curriculum and hiring one professor in religious studies that focuses on Islam and one in history that researches Middle Eastern history. UI also brought in post-doctoral fellow Ahmed Kanna, a Harvard University graduate, who studies urban life in Arabian countries.

"We are trying to turn it into a strength at Iowa," Reisinger said. "We are an example of a place that really didn't put a lot of effort into strengthening that area (before 9/11)."

Nadia Igram, the president of the Muslim Student Association, said she is encouraged by UI's commitment and students' interest.

"The more people become knowledgeable, the more tolerant they can become," Igram said. "Any solution has to stem from the base. If people themselves have to overlook difference, I hope that would ease differences at a higher level."