Beverly Student Sets Sights On Ohio State Doctorate Program After Salem State

SALEM, MA — Charlotte McDonald is eyeing a very bright future studying the ancient past after the Beverly student — who was the valedictorian of her class at Essex Tech — accepted a chance to study for her doctorate degree at Ohio State University upon graduation from Salem State.

McDonald, who previously lived in Marblehead, was set to graduate from SSU with a bachelor of science in geography and a double major in history. She then applied to, and was accepted at, prestigious institutions across the world in Oxford University, Chicago University, Catholic University of America and Ohio State, and said she chose OSU because of the chance to study for her doctorate in six years tuition-free.

"I never imagined having an opportunity like this," she said. "It was very hard not knowing where I would be or what my life would look like next year. I'm a planner, so the waiting game that has been going on these past six months while waiting to hear back from programs was challenging for me.

"But I'm ready to take on the new challenges this PhD program will present me with."

McDonald originally attended the University of Massachusetts out of Essex Tech to study law before transferring back "home" to Salem State following a personal loss.

While at SSU, she became a member of the school's Commonwealth Honors Program, worked as a researcher and writing intern at the Salem Maritime National Historic Site, was involved with the national history honor society, and presented research at a national conference where she was a student speaker on campus last year.

She credited Salem State with providing her with the foundation for the next stage of her education. She credited Alexandros Kyrou and Gayle Fischer and Interim Associate Dean Andrew Darien with being mentors and helping her through the graduate school admittance process.

"At SSU, I learned the skills that are crucial to being a historian, research and writing, and I discovered how much I enjoy the process," she said. "I was also introduced to a civilization that I had never heard of before — the Byzantine Empire — and fell in love with it to the point that I am devoting the next six years of my life to studying it.

"I have come to realize that history is not simply studying the past but understanding people."

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. X/Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)