In February 2016, Dr. John Girard, Peyton Anderson Endowed Chair of IT at Middle Georgia State University, traveled to the United Arab Emirates to participate in the Fulbright Scholar Program. During this three-week session, he delivered a series of lectures, at both the graduate and undergraduate level, facilitated faculty workshops and worked with university leaders to expand their knowledge management program.

The adventure began with Girard traveling to the United Arab Emirates to work with Al Ain University of Science and Technology.  His grant was part of the Fulbright Specialist Program, which promotes linkages between U.S. scholars and professionals and their counterparts at host institutions overseas.  The program is administered by the Council for International Exchange of Scholars, who describe it as "the program awards grants to U.S. faculty and professionals approved to join the specialist roster in select disciplines to engage in short-term collaborative projects at eligible institutions in over 140 countries worldwide. Shorter grant lengths give specialists greater flexibility to pursue projects that work best with their current academic or professional commitments."
 
Girard especially enjoyed the opportunity to engage with students at Al Ain University as well as its sister university, Al Falah University, in Dubai. The biggest surprise to him was just how similar Emeriti and American students really are.  The intellectual curiosity and thirst for knowledge that he witnessed in the UAE mirrors what he sees in his classes at Middle Georgia State University.  Equally interesting was his discovery that the faculty in the UAE have similar challenges as faculty at home, for example, the increased demands of accreditation.