Tammy Wright

I am currently pursuing my doctorate in clinical psychology (PsyD) at California Southern University while working as an intern. Before this, I worked in social work with youth ages 13 to 21, helping them access critical resources and support services. In this role, I assisted students with finding housing, obtaining food, getting medication reviewed by their doctors, and accessing any other resources they needed. One of the major challenges I faced was finding students housing - today, a lot of kids live on their own and need affordable apartments, or they live together because of the drug addiction issues affecting their families. Many students are raising themselves or being raised by a grandparent, and they face constant financial struggles. Some work two or three jobs while still going to school, and many are couch surfers, living with friends place to place. I was inspired to get into social work because I was a young parent myself - I had my son at 16 and my daughter at 18 - so I wanted to be able to provide resources for young adults because I know how hard it was. I've also served as an adjunct instructor and have written two books about helping people with entrepreneurship, business, and financials.