AMERICAN COLLEGE OF HISTORY AND LEGAL STUDIES ANNOUNCES ESTEEMED HISTORIAN AS THE SCHOOL'S FOUNDING

Michaael Chesson SALEM, NH—Dr. Michael B. Chesson, a leading scholar in the field of American history and a United States Navy veteran, has joined the American College of History and Legal Studies (ACHLS) as the founding professor, the new senior college announced today.

Dr. Chesson recently retired from the University of Massachusetts-Boston, where he was formerly the chair of the department of history, the department's senior Americanist, and a professor of history in the undergraduate and graduate schools. He will teach American history in the classroom at the ACHLS, which is set to open in Salem in August. The college, which is the only one in the country focusing exclusively on history, will offer only the junior and senior years of undergraduate education and grant bachelor degrees.

"I am very hopeful and optimistic. The history college is a new concept in higher education and this is a great adventure," Dr. Chesson said. "I really think that it will take off and fly. It has taken years of planning and development to get to this stage, and I am excited to be a part of it."

Dr. Chesson earned his A.B. in history from the College of William and Mary in 1969 and served in the U.S. Navy in 1970-71. He retired from the Naval Reserve as a captain in 2005. Following active duty, he enrolled at Johns Hopkins University in 1972 and began graduate study under the late esteemed professor David Herbert Donald. When Professor Donald joined the faculty at Harvard University, Chesson followed and earned his Ph.D. in 1978.

Dr. Chesson is an acclaimed author and noted expert on the American Civil War era. His first book, "Richmond after the War, 1865-1890", was nominated for the Pulitzer Prize and won the Museum of the Confederacy's Jefferson Davis prize in 1982 for the best book on the Civil War era. His second book, co-edited with Dr. Leslie J. Roberts, was "Exile in Richmond: The Confederate Journal of Henri Garidel", and it won the Founders Award from the Museum of the Confederacy in 2002 for the best edition of a primary source. Chesson is only one of two historians to win both of these coveted awards. His third book, an edition of Dr. J. Franklin Dyer 's "The Journal of a Civil War Surgeon", earned high praise from Civil War historians, medical doctors, and historians of science.

He has taught the Civil War and Reconstruction, American Slavery, the Old South, both parts of the U.S. Survey, and a variety of undergraduate and graduate seminars at UMass Boston. He is also a prolific writer of articles and book reviews.

"We are delighted to welcome Dr. Chesson," said Maureen Mooney, chief operating officer of the ACHLS. "He has the right combination of experience and vision that complement our strategic goals and priorities. I look forward to working with him as we establish academic excellence at the college."

The ACHLS course work will be rigorous, with emphasis placed on students becoming critical thinkers, better writers, and polished public speakers. Graduates will be prepared to compete with anyone in today's intensely competitive marketplace.

Moreover, the high quality of education provided by the ACHLS is very affordable. While tuition continues to skyrocket at four year colleges all across the nation, annual tuition at the college is only $10,000 and half-tuition scholarships of $5,000 are available for qualified applicants.

Students at the college who wish to pursue a career in the legal field and are qualified will have a pathway into the Massachusetts School of Law, and they may combine their senior year at the ACHLS with their first year of law school at MSL to earn their law degree in six years instead of the traditional seven.

The ACHLS will make its home at 1 Stiles Road, suite 104 in Salem, and classes will be held in the evenings.

"I am very excited to be in our new location, which is ideal for its easy access to Southern New Hampshire and Northern Massachusetts," said Dr. Chesson.

Applications from students who have completed at least two years of college with a minimum of 60 credits are now being accepted, and credits earned from accredited four-year institutions and community colleges are easily transferred

To schedule a visit, request a catalog, or find out more information, visit achls.org, email info@achls.org, or call 603-204-3918.