The director of an alternative education program is running into the same problem as the Institute of Science and International Security, a mobile payment company, and a condominium complex in Florida.

Project ISIS, an education project implemented at TCU’s Starpoint School and Fort Worth’s Trinity Valley School,  changed its name to The LiiNK Project this week. The name change is a result of a shared acronym with the high profile terrorist organization, the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria, said Dr. Debbie Rhea, project director. 

Rhea said the decision to change the name was hers to make after consulting with TCU’s strategic communications office.  She did not change the name to LiiNK until last week because she believed that the terrorist group would “go away” but ultimately decided the association was too great a risk. 

Project ISIS, which began two years ago, stands for “innovating strategies, inspiring students.” The new name is an acronym for “lets inspire innovation ‘N kids.” The program increases the amount of daily recess children have at school and implements a character development component.

Sophomore business major Mohamed Sharaf, a Syrian American, said that he believes the unrest in Syria will grow and supports the project with separating from the acronym. Sharaf spent his summers in Syria visiting family until the war broke out four years ago.

“Everybody knows somebody who’s been killed, who’s been arrested. I mean I have family members, little cousins, that have seen people killed in front of them,” Sharaf said. However, he has not personally met anyone who supports ISIS and explained that the majority of Syrians do not support the organization.

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