Past, Present & Future

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In the first episode of Dialogues Across the Decades: Conversations with Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program Alumni, listen in to three women who have embodied the mission of the program, now in its fortieth year. We welcome Emerita Senior Associate Dean of the First Year of Studies, Angie Chamblee ’73, the original director who helped start the program in 1986; Christy Greene ’96, a Balfour alumna who returned to lead the program as director from 2008-09; and Irasema Trujillo Hernandez ’24, who recently earned her Master’s degree at Oxford University and now runs a nonprofit to give back to her community.

Chart the Balfour Program’s beginnings, how it has evolved over the years, and what the future might look like for students, academically, socially, and personally as they learn to lead with purpose.

Since 1986, the Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program has served as a cornerstone of many students’ university experiences, guiding them through the critical transition from high school to campus life and beyond. The Program, built on three core pillars of leadership, intellectual engagement, and commitment service, has been more than just a summer program; it is a lifelong community committed to making a positive difference in the world. We invite you to hear stories of struggles and successes that have shaped Balfour Scholars’ journey over forty years.

The Founding of the Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program

Envisioned by Angie Chamblee ‘73, Assistant Dean in the First Year of Studies (FYS) at the time, and championed by iconic University President Fr. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C. and FYS Dean Emil T. Hofman ’53 M.S., ’63 Ph.D., the Balfour Program was established in 1986 with funding from the GTE Foundation. Originally designed for underrepresented students in STEM, additional funding two years later from the Aetna Foundation made it possible to include students in arts and letters, business, and architecture. In 1990, the Balfour Foundation endowed the program, allowing it to continue to this day.

Having evolved from a first-year bridge program into four years of accompaniment for Program Scholars, the Program is celebrating forty years of turning struggles into stepping stones, sustained by service, inspired by intellectual curiosity, and bound together by decades of shared community.

To learn more about the Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program, please visit their website.

The Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program Guide to Success

• Be unapologetically yourself and own your worth: Remember that you are worthy of being wherever you are and should show up with the confidence to be your authentic self.
• Face your fears and stop self-handicapping: Do not retreat from challenges to avoid the possibility of failure; instead, attack your goals and work through the discomfort to build character.
• Lean on your “surrogate siblings”: Tap into your network or community for the peer support and group mentorship that helps you navigate life.
• Take every opportunity when a door opens: When someone sees potential in you or a new opportunity arises, have the fortitude to take it rather than letting it pass.
• Be kind to yourself and protect your pace: While it is important to be bold and ask questions, you must also be gentle with yourself and manage your own speed to avoid burnout.
• Study what you actually love: Stay in your own lane and pursue the subjects that genuinely interest you, regardless of whether they are seen as “cool” or high-status by others.
• Focus on solutions rather than just problems: When facing a difficult situation in your education or career, look past the list of problems to find the many possible ways to resolve them.
• Find your voice in safe spaces first: Use the comfort of a community like Balfour to practice being vocal and confident, then carry that same energy into other spaces.
• Give others the grace to grow: Learn to appreciate the different perspectives people bring to the table and use communication to benefit from each other’s unique stories.
• Build together and stay accountable: Lean into the collective power of your cohort, because when we hold each other accountable, everyone wins together.

Meet the Speaker: Angie Chamblee '73

Angie Chamblee ’73 was active in higher education administration and academic advising for close to forty years, specializing in transitional issues of university first year students. For thirty-three years, she served as part of the leadership team in the First Year of Studies at the University of Notre Dame in Assistant, Associate and Senior Associate Dean positions. One of her most treasured accomplishments during her tenure in the First Year of Studies was the co-directorship and directorship of the Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program. She holds a BA degree in psychology and was in one of the first undergraduate classes to include women from the University of Notre Dame. She also attended Michigan State University, where she earned a masters degree in educational psychology. Since retirement in 2013, she has appreciated the time to read, volunteer at the Raclin Murphy Museum of Art, workout at the Duncan Student Center and travel.

Meet the Speaker: Christy Greene '96

Christy Greene graduated from the University of Notre Dame in 1996. She also holds a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Pennsylvania which she completed in 2001.

She has served as a file reader for the Notre Dame Law School since 2023. Prior to working for the Law School, she read applications for the Office of Undergraduate Admissions for ten years.

At Notre Dame, she began her tenure as an assistant director and Multicultural Recruitment Coordinator in the Office of Admissions before transitioning to the First Year of Studies as Associate Professional Specialist and Director of the Balfour Program.  She was also a founding member and assistant for the African American Summer Scholars Program, served on the President’s Committee on Cultural Diversity, was the faculty advisor to Shades of Ebony and the Interrace Forum. 

Some of her past board participation includes the Black Alumni Board (Recruitment Director), Boys and Girls Club of America of Greater Lee County Board (Research and Development Chair) and currently, the Community Advisory Board for Hillman Cancer Center in Pittsburgh.

Her husband, Allen, is a ’00 grad of Notre Dame and two of her children, Rian (’27) and Samuel (’29) attend Notre Dame.  Her youngest, Seneca, is in 8th grade.

Meet the Speaker: Irasema Trujillo Hernandez '24

Irasema Trujillo ’24 is a first-generation student from Michoacán, Mexico. She holds a B.A. in Political Science, Global Affairs, and Latino Studies from the University of Notre Dame (2024) and an MSc in Migration Studies from the University of Oxford (2025).

She was a Lilly Endowment Scholar and John Young Scholar, earning a full scholarship to college. At Notre Dame, she was selected for competitive leadership and academic programs including the Balfour-Hesburgh Scholars Program and the Notre Dame Washington Program. Her academic achievements include being named a Truman Scholar Finalist, receiving Departmental Honors in Political Science, and induction into Phi Beta Kappa and Pi Sigma Alpha. She was also awarded the Thomas J. McMahon IV Endowment for Excellence for the Pursuit of Scholarship at the University of Oxford.

Growing up in an immigrant household and witnessing the barriers to education, healthcare, and social safety nets vital to success in the U.S., Irasema has made it a mission to dedicate her life to safeguarding the rights and increasing access to children in immigrant homes.

She is the Founder and Co-Executive Director of Stronger Together Unidos, a bilingual, student-led 501(c)(3) nonprofit working to close educational access gaps for Latino first-generation students across Indiana.

Irasema currently lives in Oxford, where she works in public policy and political consulting. She plans to pursue a joint MBA/JD with the goal of advancing the rights and opportunities of migrant youth worldwide.