As one of the few African-American women in these fields, Wright hopes that by sharing her adventures with young women and minorities, she can convince them that studying the world's oceans can make for a rewarding career.

Students are on a journey to discover who they are and what they can become.

Eleven tribal colleges have banded together to join the National Science Foundation-sponsored All Nations Alliance for Minority Participation (ANAMP) in order to help Native Americans train for careers in engineering.

Her past experiences helped her realize the importance of being a scientist and a mentor, and she currently uses her expertise to help manage natural resources and to bring women and minorities, especially Native Americans, into science.