Kessler holds bachelor's and master's degrees in industrial engineering and operations research from the Georgia Institute of Technology.

All of the hotels are part of the Marriott Autograph Collection Hotels marketing program, central reservation system and national sales, public relations offices, and technical services [4] Kessler is the Founder and Chairman of the New Ebenezer Retreat and Conference Center in Rincon, Georgia.

Founded in 1736, the township of New Ebenezer was settled by a group of Lutheran Salzburgers seeking a new beginning and a place of religious freedom.

[9] The trust continues to support the conference center, the Treutlen House, and its programming and related activities.

The 80 foot, stainless steel high tech tower is positioned in a 100-inch diameter fountain and an assortment of 100 different songs chime on the quarter-hour.

[10] During the 1996 Olympics, the set of NBC’s "Today Show" was centered directly in front of the Campanile, providing international exposure.

It is one of the largest theological libraries in the United States with nearly 130,000 items in the rare book and archive collection alone.