Julie A. Risher, General Counsel

Ms. Risher received her Bachelor of Arts from Salem College, magna cum laude, and was a museum director for several years before entering law school.  She received her Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1990.  Following a clerkship with the Hon. Willis P. Whichard on the Supreme Court of North Carolina, Ms. Risher worked in private practice for two years, where she focused primarily on employment law.  Subsequently, she worked for state and local government, including the N.C. Attorney General’s Office, and the city attorney offices in Durham and Winston-Salem, before coming to the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in early 2009.

The General Counsel provides legal guidance to the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, its Board of Trustees, and its affiliated entities.

Amanda G. Balwah, Executive Assistant to the General Counsel

Ms. Balwah received her Bachelor of Arts in American Studies from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she participated in several internships that sparked her interest in higher education, nonprofit administration and community development.  In 2009, she received her Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management from the Norcross Graduate School at High Point University.  Ms. Balwah first came to the University of North Carolina School of the Arts in 2005 as the Administrative Manager of the Thomas S. Kenan Institute for the Arts.  She joined the Office of the General Counsel, and became Secretary to the University, in December 2010.

Julie A. Risher, General Counsel
Email: risherj@uncsa.edu
Phone: (336) 770-3273

Amanda G. Balwah, Executive Assistant
Email:  balwaha@uncsa.edu
Phone: (336)770-1321