Michelle Balderrama

Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney | Culpeper, Virginia 

Michelle Balderrama is a rising senior at Harvard College studying Government, Neuroscience, and Philosophy. A proud daughter of Bolivian immigrants and native of Culpeper, Virginia, Michelle is committed to expanding opportunity and bridging the divide between lived experience and institutional power.

During the pandemic, she worked for her school system, where she saw firsthand how students in her rural county lacked reliable internet access and how Spanish-speaking families accessed services like the Free and Reduced Lunch Program at disproportionately lower rates. She later brought this perspective to Congress, where she handled immigration casework and supported agriculture and rural infrastructure policy in the office of U.S. Representative Abigail Spanberger.

As a senior in high school and informal college counselor, Michelle guided her peers through the college application process, sharing resources she learned through Thrive Scholars. Today, she continues this work by advising students, developing a college access curriculum tailored to first-generation and rural students, and leading statewide outreach for Harvard Admissions. She has conducted research for the Hispanic Federation, writes for Education Next, and has spoken at the Harvard Graduate School of Education and national nonprofit board meetings.

Michelle has also contributed to a clinical trial aimed at developing a drug for a neurodegenerative disease at McKinsey & Company and researched for the U.S. Bureau of Intelligence and Research. At Harvard, she serves as a Citizenship Tutor at the Institute of Politics, Social Media Director for Women in Business, and Spanish interpreter for the Harvard Law School Language Access Program.

This summer, Michelle is working in the Office of the Commonwealth’s Attorney in Culpeper County, assisting with prosecutions involving domestic violence and juvenile victims. As the only Spanish speaker in the office, she will provide critical support to families navigating the legal system.