When O’Neill lecturer Tamra Wright was a child, she wanted to become a lawyer focused on civil rights and helping others.

“My parents’ upbringing involved socioeconomic challenges,” she says. “They were always very open with me about their lived experiences and never hid it. But they also emphasized the support and love they had from a village of caring people around them.”

Her parents’ pasts and the values they instilled in her helped shape Wright’s future. She’s worked in government as a liaison for work assistance programs, in nonprofits serving vulnerable youth, and in higher education both supporting students from underserved and marginalized backgrounds and educating organizations on diversity, equity, and inclusion.

Wright initially joined O’Neill School in a position that combined teaching with administrative responsibilities focused on DEI initiatives. Over time, her position transitioned into primarily teaching. Her courses fill a unique role within the school, examining topics where public policy and criminal justice meet.

That’s also where she’s now focusing her doctoral dissertation as she works toward her Ph.D.

“I’m a firm believer in proactive prevention to offset the need for future intervention,” she says. “That’s why my doctoral research centers on the intersection of social work and criminal justice, specifically social work practice in juvenile justice settings.”

Her goal is to have—and ensure support and training for—more social workers in juvenile justice spaces. Wright wants to see these two fields that serve the same vulnerable populations work together in the best interest of those they serve and the community.

She says understanding how these systems are structured and how they overlap are the first steps to engaging and empathizing with the people involved.

“As public servants with a duty to do no harm, we must reflect on how we may knowingly or unknowingly support structures that disenfranchise or disempower people,” she explains. “To empower is to acknowledge and respect the worth and dignity that every individual possesses as a human being.”

Understanding people, structures, and systems—while doing the hard work to support the systems that work and dismantle those that don’t—are key lessons Wright teaches in her O’Neill courses.

Why do you enjoy teaching students?

“I enjoy sharing my lived experience with students. My father was a correctional officer in a maximum-security prison for more than two decades. His career provided part of the foundation for my work and allowed me to see the challenges within the system first-hand. I also start each semester by telling students I’m not only a teacher, I’m also a learner. My students’ lived experiences make them wise in ways I am not. While I can introduce foundational aspects of corrections within the criminal justice system, I recognize the immense value in inviting students who have served as correctional officers to contribute their valuable insights during our discussions. Their perspectives benefit everyone and help me grow professionally and personally.”

“I also embrace opportunities to break down barriers and dismantle stereotypes. For some students, I’m their first Black female professor and that’s meaningful. I understand the significance of representation and the impact it can have on students’ educational journeys. I work to structure my class so everyone feels included—regardless of race, ethnicity, political ideology, or anything else. Teaching is an opportunity to connect with people from all walks of life, break down barriers, and push students to think critically. I don’t want my students to simply regurgitate information—I want them to think critically, to respectfully and authentically challenge what they’re hearing, and to not be afraid to ask questions. In my six years at O’Neill, I’ve been very lucky to have wonderful students who are open to what I have to say. They are what keeps me going.”

Why should students choose to come to O’Neill?

“We have great faculty, people who are really interested in the lived experience of certain communities and using that lived experience to further change. We have faculty who are not just regurgitating information from a textbook, but who have created classes to help you develop holistically. O’Neill doesn’t just provide a singular skillset to its students. We’re teaching students how to approach and address the biggest problems our society is facing today.”