Amazingly Cool guy with the patience of a Saint. ALL TESTS ARE BLUEBOOK ESSAYS!

Gives you the exam questions two months before the test. You don't even have to go to class.

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Very good guy... you can prepare for the tests well because he gives you the essay questions ahead of time

good teacher...can prepare well for tests---I would suggest going to classes, although it isn't always necessary---keep up with reading

This is the kind of teacher that makes you want to go to class. He is very very interesting and has first hand knowledge of subjects from his archeaology background. I never did the readings, just went to class and studied a bit before the test.

Very good teacher. He makes history interesting when I normally fall asleep in history classes.

A very nice guy who tries very hard to tell funny jokes - class is pretty simple - if you go, you don't have to do the readings to get A/Bs - gives essay questions ahead of time - all exams are bluebook essays - definitely knows what he's talking about!

great guy...easy to talk to out of class..lectures can get a bit dry but an excellent professor to have

Nice guy, tries to be funny. He doesn't tell you what you should be learning, he leaves it for you to draw your own conclusions and knowledge. He's a great teach who will make you learn stuff.

very clear, interesting lecs

Capstone course, was very nervous. Is available, even on weekends. Great resource himself, can direct a student researcher to all kinds of primary and secondary material. Absolutely great teacher/professor, nice person. Lots of fun to talk with.

Super caring and laid back. If you need deadlines, you won't get them. You have to do it on your own.

Nice guy and very approachable. Highly recommend

If you are into ancient history make sure you take one of his classes. He is intelligent and willing to discuss any questions or concerns you have. I would recommend him for 490, but get started early!

He might be slightly unclear at times, but both knows and admitts it. A very caring professor who looks out for the students sanity over paper deadlines. Chavalas rocks!

He is a great teacher and LOVES what he does! he is very helpful... just listen to his stories and take lots of notes... He grades on what you know, not what you don't know! All essay exams I recommend him!

Very personable, but almost too laid back. I came to learn, not chat.

Really knows ancient Middle Eastern hist. Open for questions anytime. Good guy altogether. As long as you have his same views (or at least write from his same views) you will do well on his tests.

makes class interesting and fun...nice guy

He knows so much about what he teaches, but beware! I fall asleep almost every time in his class! Gum and doodling really help. He's basically a good teacher, essays are easy if you look over your notes, and no homework. He's actually pretty funny, too - his voice puts me to sleep though.

Took this class over J-Term. Gives you 4 essay questions day before, 3 on the test, write on 2. Pretty fair grader if you prepare a good essay with as much as evidence as possible. Pretty easy class with an intelligent guy.

Not bad at all. He goes through the readings in class and helps you pick out the important stuff. Gives essays ahead of time so you can prepare for tests...very knowledgeable and throws in some humor--even though it can be quite dry--he tries! Nice and very helpful! Not hard to get an A

If you don't mind reading he is an excellent teacher who grades very fairly

Extremely boring class, weird humor but his tests are unbelievably easy: showing up for class is pretty much optional

He is a pretty good teacher but is extremely unorganized in his lectures and can be boring when reading from books. Does add some strange humor but i wouldn't recommend taking him more than once a semester. He is an easy A though, gives paper extensions and test questions out beforehand. Easy easy!

He's an overall good guy, although he tries to make jokes often, that usually aren't very funny. He's all over the place in lectures and its hard to know where he is sometimes. It may be boring most class days, but its easy do get an A if you study enough and do the reading, which isn't too hard.

Easy to get a C need to work a little for an A. He's a great guy, but it would be nice if he set deadlines and stuck to them. It would help the procrastinators!!

He is Greek himself, so he loves the Greek and Roman classes, which is apparent. Tries to make jokes, and some are funny. Easy-going guy, I really enjoyed his class. Although it can be a little dry at times.

this class is/was amazing! Chavalas is a great teacher and very into this topic. I love this class and was eager to go each week. Very informative

I love this guy, his enthusiasm for the topic is so obvious. He actually makes learning history colorful and fun. It is great that he uses actual historical sources instead of just the text book.

Overall very good professor. He enjoys the subject matter and shows it. Likes to go off on sidenotes about related things of interest. Likes to show slides. Lectures can sometimes be boring and not always well organized. Grading is fair. Tests can be tough, but just learn what he expects and you will be FINE. Real nice guy outside class too!

Goes like this...hated everything about history, took Chavalas, now I want to become a history teacher. Hate mornings, never missed his class at 7:45 a.m.! Basically the best history prof! Tests=Piece of Cake Homework=NO HW!! YEA :)

This class was so boring and hard to wake up for (7:45 in the morning). Also too much reading.

I took this class over the summer. There was allot of reading for a short class. If you did the reading and attended class you will do well. He has a passion for the subject, and is a nice guy.

AMAZING PROFESSOR! He's pretty interesting and a great guy. He has a very dry sense of humor...

Professor Chavalas is the most intelligent professor I have had at UWL thus far. He assigns a lot of reading but its not required. You will need to go to class just to know what he wants to test you on. 3 tests the entire semester are the only things he grades. Dry humor is his specialty. Only lecturer that actually interested me.

This professor is my absolute favorite. He is my mentor and adviser in everything Ancient Near East! Incredibly intelligent, knows multiple dead & modern languages. His Akkadian language class is great for those who are up for a challenge and have a knack for languages. His exams may be a bit tough, but you definitely leave more enriched!

If you hate history, I would definitely recommend taking during J-term. Your grade does consist of essay tests, but I thought he was an easy grader. He tries to keep class and the topic interesting by telling some of his life experiences.

His lectures can be kind of boring but if you can get into it it can be interesting. 3 exams each worth 100 points and you have to be able to remember a lot of stuff. If your good a memorizing the class can be easy. If you go to class you don't really need to read.

Great a classic professor

Chavalas is always more than willing to help. If you can make it through his lectures, which seem to be boring, and take notes it shouldn't be hard to get a good grade. He even gives you the questions before the exam so you have an idea of what's expected.

He is awesome! Funny and really interesting to listen to. The class is NOT what I was expecting it to be. It's more of a language class, but it is so EASY! He doesn't expect too much from you, but still expects you to participate. It's a great balance. Take him if you're interesting in learning something new.

Favorite professor! Dry sense of humor, passion and extreme amount of knowledge for his craft. He's an easy grader, very informative and helpful outside of class.

Most HIS gen eds suck. However, this one was sweet. Dr. C is the man. He is very "old-school" with an incredibly dry sense of humor (which is awesome). His class is straight-forward with no homework... just 3 essay-tests. He is easily the most intelligent and interesting professor I've had at UW-L.

constantly reading/referring to some book in lecture. no homework, except readings if you choose to do those, and 3 tests to study for. his humor is kinda lame and off, but I thought he was funny. The class is interesting, but he is unclear what he is looking for on the tests.

Chavalas is a great classical history professor. He does get a little off topic in lecture, but his humor is interesting. He gives you the essay questions before the exam and is an easy grader. Very helpful outside of class. I suggest doing the secondary source readings, but primary sources are and lectures are optional

He's funny and really nice. His classes would be pretty tough if you don't do the outside reading, but not impossible. He's funny and very helpful, but expects his students to be as passionate as him (which may be tough).

Dr. C is a great professor. Only 3 tests, never any homework, except optional reading, which will boost your grade if you do it. He has an original sense of humor, some like it, some don't. I thought he was incredibly funny. My class was at 7:45 am and I had no trouble staying awake even though I'm not a morning person.

Entertaining and easy going, easy to listen to lectures and explains things well. Sometimes hard to follow especially if you're not a history major but nice and very approachable if you have any questions. 3 written exams which are tough but not bad if you study hard and a 10+ pg paper. lots of reading that is helpful if you can get to it.

What I most liked about this professor was his grading, as I came out with good grades on the exams though I didn't study much. My final paper was cracked out in meager hours and he gave me an A! I don't usually get marks like these so I was very receptive to his kind grading. He has an attention-grabbing teaching style too, which is refreshing.

TAKE HIM! TAKE THIS CLASS! i can't stress how easy of a grader he is. he's a sweet man who's really passionate about his field and has tons of great stories. i'm not a history fan so i wasn't eager to take this class but i ended up loving it. he's not boring and makes history fun and interesting. TAKE THIS CLASS!!

Dr. Chavalas is a wonderful example of a well educated and professional professor. He's very intelligent, knows his stuff in an out, and has also had field experience as an archaeologist. Great sense of humor and very approachable. Tests are easy and straight forward, no surprises at all in this class. Highly recommend this dude!

Dr. Chavalas is a wonderful teacher. I honestly don't even mind going to his 7:45 class for an 1 hr. 25. minutes session because the topics are super interesting. He is such an easy grader and although it may seem overwhelming to prepare for his three tests you will do fine. He doesn't deducts points so just put in a little effort. Great Teacher!

Dr. Chavalas is definitely a great person and willing to help you out if you ask. Staying awake listening to his ramblings at 7:45 in the morning can be difficult, but he's worth listening to. I didn't read everything, but I went to every class--it really helped me understand the material. Take extensive notes and do the best to read the majority.

I really enjoyed this class. I'm not a history major and I don't have much interest in history but he made the class interesting, even though it was at 7:45. I did not do very well on my second of three exams and I went in and talked to him and he made it possible to stil receive an A in the class. Super nice guy. 3 exams worth 300 points total

Very nice guy. Really helpful and approachable. He lets you explore like a real historian. Instead of giving you all the facts together, he assigns readings and lets you tell him about it in the exams. Everything he says is Gold. Takes notes and use it for your exams, although he likes to see your effort in finding an answer on your own.

Dr. C is what every professor wishes they were-- he's funny, professional, very intelligent, helpful, and passionate about his profession. A boss not only in the classroom, he's also an archaeologist so he knows what he's preaching. Totally recommended, he makes history classes worth going to even if you're not a history fan like me.

Dr. C. is a very helpful professor. Go to class he will keep you entertained and that is where you figure out what topics may be on the exam. Get a basic profile of those topics and supplement your answers with things from the textbooks

I hated history, and I still do. I just wrote down everything he said in class and memorized it for the essay style tests. It was absolutely no fun whatsoever. I never read or studied unless it was the week of the test. Not easy, but not impossible. Take this class if you're good and memorizing!

LOVE THIS GUY. Funny, interesting lectures, and clearly very interested and knowledgable on his topics of history. I think he sets very clear expectations of what will be on the essay tests and what he wants in the final paper.

Amazing Professor, loved the class. Even made the boring stuff interesting, super easy if you just listen in class. Highly recommend, even for electives or a gen ed.

Chavalas is a historian, not a teacher. He's a brilliant, quirky guy, who knows his stuff.. but be prepared to do the learning yourself (welcome to college). You get a lot of books, and he basically tells you where in them to find what you need to know. Expectations are clear-cut, but use his office hours for help anyway.

Took this class over J-term on campus. It was a drag going to class at 8am and sitting through his lectures for 3 hours 4 days a week. Very interesting class though and overall not too hard. Chavalas is a pretty quirky guy but willing to help if you need it. I'd take him for history if you can.

Best Prof I've ever taken. Honestly, this guy is incredible. He cares about his students a ton, always available to talk about materials in class. If you have any qualms about history or need to fulfill gen eds or whatever, take him as an elective if you need, but take him. He's hilarious and lectures were always fun.

Dr. C is awesome - his expectations are clear and handed out day 1 of the semester, and there aren't any surprises along the way. He's very understanding if you need help, and he's just an all around funny guy with a lot of experience in his field.

Overall very helpful, funny, and nice guy. 3 tests and a paper. I never knew exactly what was going to be on the test and he's really vague about everything. BUT as long as you do the readings you'll get an at least a B or AB. Definitely sit in the back so you can space out or work on other homework, as lectures really seem pointless.

Dr. Chavalas is very intelligent and for this reason it's difficult to do well on essays because it's hard to retain the amount of information he expects. The class can be dry, but he shares many interesting experiences. A lot of people skip class and do okay, but if your one of the few who go to class he'll let you in on what will be on the exam.

Dr. Chavalas is a very funny professor. Most people will find the area he teaches very boring though. His jokes are really the only thing that made the class worth going to. Attendance is not very important as long as you spend a lot of time preparing for the three written exams. He grades them fairly.

Chavalas is a great lecturer and a really funny guy. Every class period was a lecture, and the only factors for the grade were three equally weighted exams. The exams were easy to do well on, as long as you attended you could get a B without too much effort. However it is very hard to get an A. Easy to get good grades, tough to get great grades.

Great guy, willing to help individually. I would take him again in a heartbeat.

Dr. C is one of the best professors I have ever had. He really cares about his students and is willing to take time out of his day to help answer any questions you have. All-around great professor and person!

Took his class my senior year because it sounded interesting and I have no regrets. He is one of the nicest Professors that I have ever had the pleasure of knowing and he is always willing to help outside of class. He is very intelligent in his field and makes lectures interesting and funny so that it was easy for me to pay attention and learn.

Dr. Chavalas is a good professor. His lectures are long but interesting. He is funny which is greatly appreciated. To do well you have to put in a lot of time outside of class to prepare for the exams. There are three exams (each worth 100 point and each are in class essays). Go to class or there is no chance you pass

Professor Chavalas is awesome. He cares about his students and his humor makes an early 7:45am class not so bad. Lectures are long, but he has a lot of good information in them for tests. Your grade depends on three exams that consist of essays. DO ALL THE READINGS!!! Some of his essay topics are pretty obscure, so take notes on the readings.

Dr. Chavalas' class is quite fun. He's very passionate about what he does, and he's pretty funny on his side stories. I would suggest you do all the readings to help you test better, and you are able to send him in sample essays before the test. Tests are based upon 4 big idea statements. You write one "long" essay and 5 short essays. Easy class!

Such a dull subject.. Women in the Babylonian Times. Dr. C is absolutely hilarious though. Only 3 total assignments for HIS110. All were papers which he's a pretty good grader on. Would definitely take him again if I had to.

I was dreading this class because I am not a huge history fan, but Dr. C made it very interesting. Lectures are not mandatory but they help A LOT if you aren't a huge fan of reading books. He gives good feedback on the 3 papers you have (no other quizzes or assignments) and going to office hours helped me understand the information better.

Dr. Chavalas is a great professor. If anyone gets a bad grade in his class it is entirely their fault. He lets you know what is going to be on every test at least 4 weeks in advance so you can prepare for it. The people that are giving him low scores simply did not prepare. Its a college course you will have to work for a good grade. Great prof!!!

Dr C is an amazing professor. He gives you four areas to study before every test. As long as you study those areas you are gold. Super easy to access and very understanding. You can tell he really cares about his students. I cant recommend Dr C enough! He is old school and doesnt use canvas but is super responsive on email. Also he is super funny!

Super nice, but will make you work for your grade. This class really made me think, but everything is laid out in the beginning and he is more than willing to clarify if need be. If you pay attention and follow what he is looking for you should have no trouble with the class. Would recommend taking over the summer.

Dr. C seems boring but can be funny. Only three exams go into the grade book, but if you put work into them, it is doable to get a good grade. Be prepared to READ! Showing up to class really isn't necessary if you take the time to read the expected material. Exams consist of writing essays, and just do your best. Would recommend.

We were only graded on three tests throughout the whole semester. All of which were written essays with evidence found from the textbooks. They were extremely easy and he is not a harsh grader. Although, I'm not 100% sure he actually read the exams as he always gave you your grade back super fast with no feedback.

Despite getting several books for this class, he only goes over select parts of each one. The more examples you use on the essays the better grade you are going to get. His lectures are a good starting point for the material and helps you get a feel of what the material means. He had his own sense of humor and responds quickly to emails.

Even though this class is hard for a general course, I really liked Mr. Chavalas and the lectures. A lot of reading and you are only graded on 3 essays. If you pay attention to his teaching style then you'll have no problem writing the essays. Always write more than you think. He really does care what your own thoughts are on the topics.

Dr. Chavalas is very well educated in his profession. He is so nice and passionate and caring about his students. Very easy grader but you are only graded on 3 exams the whole semester, that's it. So spend a little time on them and you will get an A.

Hated the 15 hours of lectures we were expected to watch each module IN ADDITION TO reading basically entire books. Still graded really easy though

I don't know if this is a typical format of his class but he gave us all the lectures and books we needed on day one with all the due dates the rest was on us. It's a different way of teaching but I kinda loved it. He was so interested in his class it made me interested in women in the mesopotamian era

The history class grade was made up of 3 total papers. Grading criteria isn't super clear, but he lets you submit a draft for the first paper and tells you how you can improve. It's possible to get an A without watching a single lecture. Use lots of examples from the books (~10 a question/40 an exam) and ~1000 words per question and you'll get an A

Pretty easy HIS110 class if you don't mind reading and writing essays. His essay format and class outline is clear. He responds to emails within the hour with great feedback.

This was a hybrid class, but the 1 day was optional. 3 total assignments throughout the semester and no tests. Loved the way he did this class. Gives great feedback and within a quick timeframe. He really wants you to be able to understand the material. 3 assignments were essays based off of the book readings.

In this class he doesn't give out any tests or quizzes. He gives 3 essays for the whole semester and you have a month to do each. He grades fairly easy if you put effort into them. I wrote 3, 14 page essays and received a 100% in his class. I didn't watch a single lecture and didn't go to a single class. Take him, so easy if you're a good writer.

As other reviews stated, there are only 3 assignments for HIS110 and attendance is completely optional. The professor is very nice and allows you to work at your own pace as long as you get things done on time, so you can finish the course early if you want to. He did not grade my work harshly at all and gave feedback within an hour.

I took this class online during the Winter term. It was 3 weeks long and just had 1 essay due each week. Essays were easy to write if you read the content in the books provided. He has many long lectures for you to watch, but I did not watch a single one and still got an A. He only communicates through email but is very nice and diligent!

As all the reviews say, Dr. C gives only 3 essays to write the entire semester, based entirely off of textbook readings. I attended one class, didn't watch any lectures, and received a 100% on each paper. Make sure to write 1000 words per essay question, and you'll get an A. Super nice and funny guy, very easy HIS110 class.

All we did was write three essays and the class literally turned into an asynchronous class in the end. I didn't listen to the lectures and only read the book to find evidence, but then I ended up getting an A easily. youll be fine with him.

This is a super easy class. Chavalas doesn't really hold class (I only went the first day). Graded on three papers, but they're easy as long as you are detailed with them (make them long). Would suggest this as your gen ed if you don't want in-person class. He doesn't use Canvas, but it doesn't really make a difference. Just email him.

Dr. C was a great professor. I took him for HIS 110 and the entire class consisted of three papers, that's it. He gives you your grade and feedback within a day of submitting your papers. There were lots of textbooks to pick up, but you do not have to read them all.

Hybrid class but you only had to go if you had questions, class got moved online about a month into the semester. Three essays make up your grade, but they aren't difficult as long as you read parts of the textbooks and use decent writing skills. Lots of textbooks, but you use most of them. Super nice guy and pretty easy grader.

This class is an easy A if you're willing to put in the work. The professor assigns 3 papers, which can be a breeze as long as you read the textbooks and follow the prompts. Unstuck ai was a game-changer for my essay prep - highly recommend checking it out!