Thomas More College was founded in 1978, with political science professor Peter Sampo as its first president. Sampo had been a co-founder and president of both Cardinal Newman College and Magdalen College, also in New Hampshire. The curriculum, designed by educators Donald and Louise Cowan, associated with the University of Dallas, centered on the direct reading of foundational works of Western culture. The Thomas More College of Liberal Arts is located in Merrimack, New Hampshire. The college emphasizes classical education in the Roman Catholic intellectual tradition and is named after Saint Thomas More.