Cutline: Dean Michael Chesson of the new American College of History and Legal Studies in Salem discusses the curriculum with the first class of students

603.458.5145
Email: info@achls.org
August 24, 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CLASSES UNDERWAY AT NEW AMERICAN COLLEGE OF HISTORY AND LEGAL STUDIES IN SALEM

SALEM, NH- The American College of History and Legal Studies (ACHLS), which is a new senior college in Salem and a revolutionary development in higher education, officially opened on Monday evening with the beginning of classroom instruction.

"The start of classes is very exciting," said Dean Michael Chesson. "This is wonderful new venture which took years of planning and hard work. The students who are here in our first class have an amazing educational opportunity. Founding Dean Lawrence Velvel had the vision to create a new type of institution of higher learning and the rest of us followed. It is truly inspiring to be embarking on this educational journey."

Salem Attorney and Windham resident Ruth-Ellen Post and Andrea Defusco-Sullivan, a professor at Boston College and native of Methuen, MA, are adjunct professors of writing at the ACHLS. Former New Hampshire State Representative Maureen Mooney is the college's associate dean.

The ACHLS is unlike any other college in the country. It is a senior college offering only the junior and senior years of undergraduate education, and it is the only one which will teach United States history exclusively. The ACHLS will afford students the opportunity to focus their studies in one or more of four concentrations during their senior year and those areas are: the history of civil rights, the history of urban growth and immigration, the history of American foreign relations, and the lessons of American history.

Moreover, the college will provide pathways into the Massachusetts School of Law at Andover for qualified students and give them the opportunity to earn their law degree in only six years instead of the traditional seven years. The high quality education which students will receive at the ACHLS equally prepares those who choose to enter fields other than law.

The rigorous education, which stresses critical thinking and analysis, will allow graduates to compete with anybody in today's competitive marketplace. It will make them become better writers and more fluent public speakers.

Dr. Chesson was formerly chair of the department of history at UMass-Boston, where he was the department's senior Americanist, and a professor of history in the undergraduate and graduate schools. He is a prolific author and a noted expert in the American Civil War era.

"I am very hopeful and optimistic," he said. "The start of not only a new year, but a new college, is wonderful."

The method of teaching at the college will not be by lecture. Instead, professors will use a combination of the Harkness Method of discussion employed by Phillips Exeter Academy and the Socratic Method used by the Massachusetts School of Law.

The ACHLS is very affordable at a time when the cost of higher education is increasing dramatically. Tuition is only $10,000 per year and half-tuition scholarships of $5,000 are available to qualified students. The college will hold classes in the evening three nights per week at its Salem campus, located at 1 Stiles Road, to allow students to balance their lives should they choose to work while finishing their bachelor's degrees.

The ACHLS is currently accepting applications for next year's class from students who have completed at least two years of college with a minimum of 60 credits and wish to major in history and legal studies. The program is also ideal for those who have studied at a four-year institution but left prior to graduation and now wish to complete their bachelor's degrees.

For more information about this revolutionary concept in higher education or to schedule a visit, click on www.achls.org, e-mail info@achls.org, or contact Maureen Mooney at 603-458-5145.