Right Place at the Right Time ft. Debbie Wright

When she was a high school student in rural eastern North Carolina, Debbie Wright’s algebra teacher happened to submit her name to a National Science Foundation math program. Soon, Debbie was one of ten students selected to participate in the program, which was held in Cullowhee. She was in the right place at the right time—and her experiences in that program influenced her so much that she looked beyond Cornell and Purdue to come back to WCU for her undergraduate degree. There, she found her way in the sciences and into Professor Paul Wright’s genetics lab, a vanguard program at the time. For Debbie, it was once again the chance to be in the right place at the right time. I hope you’ll give this interview a listen to learn about how Debbie strung together all of those serendipitous moments into a long, distinguished career that ultimately led her to become the chief legal counsel for patents at Kraft. Those accomplishments and more led WCU’s Alumni Association to bestow the Professional Achievement Award upon Debbie this past fall.