Tuskegee roots inspire public policy graduates’ fight for health equity

Michele Wise Wright was born in Tuskegee, Alabama, the daughter of Frankie Berry and Garland Wise in the same hospital where the U.S. government conducted the Tuskegee Syphilis Study. An experiment designed to observe the effects of untreated syphilis on black men unaware of their diagnosis became one of the most infamous and unethical medical studies in the country’s history. It also became a primary motivation for Wise Wright’s lifelong work breaking down barriers and promoting health equity among Black and other minority communities.

“The one thing that motivates me and keeps me going is to make a profound difference in the lives of others – not just today, but for generations to come,” she said. “Being Tuskegee in my DNA has a lot to do with what I do.”

Wise Wright serves in many capacities to ensure equal access to health for minorities, including an entrepreneur, business executive, engineer, screenwriter, director and producer. But above all, she is an advocate and a problem solver, a job for which she is well prepared, in part thanks to her doctorate in public policy from the U of A.

After earning a bachelor’s degree in electrical engineering from Tuskegee University, she became the first African American full-time student to earn a master’s degree in engineering management and industrial engineering from the University of Tennessee Space Institute. She worked in engineering and the pharmaceutical industry, which led her to Arkansas.

“I moved here in 1996 and never wanted to leave,” she said. “This is my home.”

When she learned about the public policy program at UA, she found the interdisciplinary degree “new, exciting and game-changing.”

“When I found out UA had a degree in public policy, I thought, ‘This is it. This is what I want to do,” she added. “The fact that the program was interdisciplinary in nature, combined with the university’s reputation for academic excellence, made it a no-brainer.”

In the Wise program, Wright focused her research on health and leadership and participated in several health care and community development initiatives. The interdisciplinary nature of the program has helped influence Wise Wright’s interdisciplinary approach to health equity, which includes work in both the private and nonprofit sectors. She developed a screening tool to help diagnose cystic fibrosis in people of color, organized an annual BIPOC conference and lecture series on rare diseases, and founded the “educational” platforms My Water Buddy and My Learning Buddy.

She was the writer, director and executive producer of an award-winning short film 54 Years Late: The Terry Wright Storya film documenting her husband’s health problems and late diagnosis of cystic fibrosis at the age of 54. She is also the director of business development and outreach for the Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers.

But most importantly, she became a leader in many health nonprofit organizations. She became executive director of the Greater Ozarks-Arkansas chapter of the American Red Cross and founded the National Organization of African Americans with Cystic Fibrosis. Participating in the public policy agenda also played a key role in writing Terry Wright’s Law, a piece of legislation he hopes to help pass that would require more comprehensive newborn screening for cystic fibrosis.

“We do a lot of outreach, outreach and education based on cystic fibrosis and rare diseases,” she said. “This was the end of our devastating journey of 54 years without a diagnosis of cystic fibrosis based on a person’s race and ethnicity. This was our chance to turn our situation into something positive and impactful.”

Wise Wright also speaks extensively at conferences and events across the country. Just this year, she spoke at the 2024 virtual meeting of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine; 18th Annual American Thoracic Society Patient and Expert Forum; and was invited to serve as a keynote speaker at the RARE Health Equity Forum Global Gene 2024. She was also invited to speak at the 2024 North American Cystic Fibrosis Conference. She has been featured in articles including USA today, National Geographer and Journal of the American Medical Association.

Her work has brought many awards and fame. She received the title of 2022 USA today Arkansas Woman of the Year and 2023 AARP Purpose Prize recipient. In 2022, she and her husband made history as the first people of color to receive the Cystic Fibrosis Foundation Arkansas Chapter’s annual Breath of Life Award, the organization’s highest award . This spring, she won the award named after Irma Hunter Brown Women’s Leadership Award from the 2024 King Kennedy Awards and the 2024 Golden Torch Award for Lifetime Achievement at the 50th Convention of the National Society of Black Engineers. This fall, Wise Wright will also receive the University of Tennessee’s 2024 Outstanding Alumni Award.

“The NSBE’s Dr. Wise Wright Lifetime Achievement Award is a well-deserved honor that reflects her outstanding leadership and excellent work throughout her career,” said Brinck Kerr III, director of the Public Policy Program. “We are spreading the word about her success here at the U of A, and we are honored to feature her as one of our outstanding and talented graduates.”

“These awards are a dream come true because they confirm that my work matters and that it makes a difference,” she said. “I realize that no one needs to recognize you. And when people do it, I never take it for granted. I never take for granted that people give me a kind word, nor do I take for granted my professors at UA – Dr. Kerr, Dr. Anna Zajicek, Dr. Dona Reese, and the late Dr. James “Jim” Swartz – my classmates and many others people at the U of A who have left an indelible mark on my life and I am grateful for my U of A village.

While Wise Wright’s work is diverse, it all aligns with a common goal—not just to raise awareness and engage others, but to envision a world where people from underrepresented communities don’t have to struggle to find equitable health care.

“We connect with people around the world who say, ‘I need help; no one takes me seriously». We got involved in this cause and made a difference by helping to save these people’s lives,” she said. “For me, there is no better gift than giving and changing the lives of others. This blesses me more than any amount of money or accolades I can receive.”