I remember the first time I saw Chancellor Victor J. Boschini, Jr. I was sitting with a group of about 40 freshmen in the Dee J. Kelly Alumni and Visitor Center. The dining tables were adorned with beautiful glassware and plates topped with butter shaped like a horned frog.

As we ate and talked about expectations, hopes and anticipations of our next four years at TCU, the faces all around me slowly began to evolve from strangers into allies.

Boschini rose and welcomed us, the newest class of Chancellor’s Scholars, to our new home.

“It’s a great time to be a Horned Frog!” Boschini said.

The chancellor talked about how excited he was to have us and of the influence he believed we would have on campus. More importantly, however, I remember the faith he had in us: faith in who we would become and what we would do with our lives.

We had an incredible privilege in the Chancellor’s Scholarship, but by accepting it, our duty was not simply to attend class for four years and then leave. Our duty was to invest time, resources and talents, both now and in the future, in the school that gave us so much.

Boschini’s words intimidated me. I was content with who I was, and I was coming to TCU to see what this school could do for me, not what I could do for it. However, the experiences the Chancellor’s Scholarship allowed me to have were inevitable avenues for change.

For example, I was encouraged to join the John V. Roach Honor’s College, which I did. While I used to be content just listening to the lecture and taking my notes, the honors classes did not allow for that kind of passive learning. The classes were discussion-based, and everyone was expected to contribute.

In these classes I was confronted with other students’ beliefs and values that were entirely different from my own. I thought it would make the class awkward, but the differences actually brought us all closer. The welcoming setting cultivated a mutual understanding and respect that allowed for productive conversation. I saw how controversial conversations can and must be handled with an open and respectful mind because it creates a safe place for everyone to express their opinions, no matter how different.

The Chancellor’s Scholarship also allowed me to study abroad for a semester in Florence. In Italy, I became friends with a local Florentine named Tommaso Martini. Throughout the semester, Tommaso helped us understand Italian culture and explained the reasons Italians think and act the way they do.

At first, I was turned off by the experience because it was unfamiliar, and I felt judged for being an American. However, Tommaso helped me see that I had accused Italians of not understanding my culture and making me feel foolish, but I never stopped to contemplate their values and normalcies. While I lived in Florence, I was a member of the Italian culture, and it was my responsibility to understand and adjust to their society. This did not mean that I had to abandon my own beliefs. It simply meant I had to be aware of and strive to respect the people who had so graciously welcomed us into their culture for the semester.

Finally, the Chancellor’s Scholarship gave me the opportunity to attend TCU. I have tried to think of one moment of specific change, but I can't, because it has been the entire four years that led me to who I am today. It was the experience of being part of a school that valued leadership and servanthood alike.

It was the daily privilege of sitting in classrooms with professors who cared about their students and pushed them to broaden their minds through readings, lectures and discussion. It was the high-caliber students I sat next to every day who motivated me to try my hardest.

These were the consistent daily experiences I received at TCU, and they cultivated me into a more mature student. It all happened because of the Chancellor’s Scholarship.

I’m now a senior, and Boschini’s words were true. It was impossible for me to stay the same. Had I tried, I would have left college as a stagnant version of myself. The Chancellor’s Scholars program served as launching pad and support system for the necessary changes to come as I was encouraged to look beyond myself to the surrounding community.

My Chancellor’s Scholar journey has taught me to be a better leader, citizen, servant, mentor and mentee. I have been humbled by the brilliant minds surrounding me and now see a world much bigger than myself—a world in desperate need of strategic thinkers and compassionate humanitarians. This is my duty as a Chancellor’s Scholar and a member of the TCU community.

Now, I sit in a different seat. I still look across the table and analyze new faces, but this time, I’m not looking at another anxious version of myself. I’m interviewing the students who may become the next class of Chancellor’s Scholars. I find myself wondering if they will be like me; if they’ll fall in love with TCU and revel in the opportunities they have been given.

Will they bring new ideas to the table? Will they push themselves to understand the viewpoints of others? Will they serve with a humble heart and lead with a steady step? Will they heed the call to never be content with staying the same but always willing to grow? Will they invest in the community that has invested in them? I can only hope the new scholars will, because that is what the Chancellor’s Scholarship and TCU require. It is not a heavy burden but a freeing one that pushes students to new heights.

I do not know where the future will take me or what role I will serve in society, but I always will have the values and principles instilled in me through the faculty, staff and students at TCU. This is something I can continue to give back, and it all starts here, at this table, where a legacy continues to be passed, and new students once again come into the Chancellor’s Scholars Program to be taught, challenged, matured and sent off to be responsible citizens in the global community. 

Were you a Chancellor’s Scholar? TCU wants to hear from you.
Email Mike Marshall: m.marshall@tcu.edu

Share your Chancellor’s Scholar story with the magazine:
tcumagazine@tcu.edu

Related story:
The Rise of the Chancellor's Scholars
Video of Chancellor's Scholars program