Jim Chrismer has been a member of the John Carroll faculty since 1970. Raised in Saint Margaret Parish in Bel Air, he is a graduate of St. Margaret School and Calvert Hall College High School.  Mr. Chrismer earned his undergraduate degree in History at Mount Saint Mary’s College and a Master’s Degree in American History at Villanova University before starting a doctoral program at the University of Virginia.

At John Carroll Mr. Chrismer has specialized in teaching Advanced Placement United States History and College Preparatory U.S. History to students in the 11^th grade. A former long-time department head, he initiated the school’s Holocaust Studies Program,  moderated the National Honor Society Chapter, supervised the Student Page Program, moderated the yearbook, and coached the Tennis Team.

Mr. Chrismer is a direct descendant of the Codori Family of Gettysburg, across whose farm (depicted above) the celebrated charge by Confederate troops of the Army of Northern Virginia occurred on the afternoon of July 3, 1863.

Mr. Chrismer and his wife Carolyn, a Minnesota native and former faculty member who works as a Children’s Librarian, live in Bel Air. Their two daughters, Ellen and Lisa, graduated from John Carroll in the 1990s before matriculating at Bryn Mawr and Goucher Colleges.

Mr. Chrismer’s community activities include being a parishioner at Saint Ignatius Church, Hickory; serving on the Historical Preservation Commission for Harford County; and chairing the Publications Committee of the Historical Society of Harford County. He is an active researcher on subjects involving Harford County during the Civil War, and is currently at work on a major publication involving African American Soldiers from Harford County who fought for the Union. He recently completed a history of St. Margaret Parish. In addition, he enjoys reading, listening to classical and country music, and traveling to historical sites--in addition to playing with daughter Lisa's new baby boy!