Student Spotlight: McKayla Roberts

McKayla Roberts, a student in the Wright Institute’s Clinical Psychology Program, was born and raised in Nebraska, where she lived with her mother and her three sisters. “My parents encouraged us to consider the military or other paths to help pay for college, since it was a common choice in our family,” she recalled. “My sisters and I didn’t want to go into the military, so I started running track when I was seven.” She competed nationally and competitively throughout her K-12 school career, spending most of her free time traveling for meets. Although all of her sisters took up different sports at a young age, McKayla was the only one who kept up with hers until college.

For her undergraduate studies, McKayla attended Oral Roberts University in Tulsa, Oklahoma. At the end of high school, she had to have hip surgery, which caused her to lose many of her track scholarship opportunities. “It caused a bit of an identity crisis because the whole point of starting track young was for it to pay for my college, but it had become a part of who I was. I really only saw myself as an athlete” she explained. “Oral Roberts took me in even though they knew I just had hip surgery, so I’m very grateful for them.” When she began at Oral Roberts, McKayla was set to major in medical molecular biology with plans of becoming an orthodontist, inspired by the way that braces had transformed her twin sister’s self-esteem. As part of her studies, she took an introductory psychology course and fell in love with the subject. “I realized I had been thinking about external ways of changing ourselves, but hadn’t thought about ways people could change themselves from the inside out,” she shared. “I realized I hadn’t yet thought about things from that perspective.” McKayla changed her major to psychology in her junior year and earned her BS in Psychology in 2019.

Immediately after graduating from Oral Roberts, McKayla moved to New Jersey and enrolled in Montclair State University, where she earned her MA in Clinical Psychology in 2021. She knew she wanted to pursue a master’s degree and that, if she didn’t keep up her momentum, she would lose steam. Part of what drew McKayla to Montclair was that it was a large, public university, and she had always attended smaller, private institutions. Unfortunately, she didn’t get the full public university experience because the clinical psychology department was isolated from the rest of the school. One of McKayla’s most memorable moments from her time at Montclair was her multicultural class. “In my entire education experience, I had never had a teacher who was a person of color and my professor for that class was a Middle Eastern woman,” she recalled. “One day she pronounced a student’s name wrong and he said, ‘It’s fine’ and she was like, ‘It’s not fine. Your name is a gift from your family, sometimes the only one, and I want to make sure I pronounce it correctly.’” That deeply impacted McKayla and has stuck with her ever since, reminding her that the work of honoring others’ differences and intersectional identities often begins with something as simple and powerful as saying their name correctly.

While working towards her master’s degree, McKayla worked at Fairmount Heights Middle School for two years as a clinical trainee, AmeriCorps tutor, and tutor fellow leader, where she made wonderful relationships with her students. “One of the most challenging parts was realizing that, while I couldn’t change the system or the curriculum entirely, I could adapt how I supported students within those constraints,” she explained. Another challenging element of the experience was the disruption caused by the pandemic and the switch to online learning. Despite these challenges, McKayla forged strong bonds with the students she worked with and created innovative ways for the students to support one another.

In the fall of 2021, McKayla moved to California and enrolled in the Wright Institute's Clinical Psychology program. She chose to pursue her PsyD in addition to her MA in order to be able to give back to the Black community, specifically individuals who were formerly incarcerated. “I knew that, as a Black woman, higher credentials would help ensure my contributions were taken seriously in a courtroom,” she reflected. “I decided to pursue a doctoral degree so I could establish credibility that no one could take away.” During her time at the Wright Institute thus far, some of her best memories are watching friends graduate each year because it inspires her to keep going on her journey.

McKayla was a practicum trainee at Contra Costa College and then Star Vista Counseling Center during her first two years at the Wright Institute. Thinking back to those early practicum experiences, McKayla feels that they laid a strong foundation for her development as a therapist. “My key takeaways from the first two years of practicum were learning to be comfortable saying ‘I don’t know’ and asking for help,” she shared. McKayla also took that time to hone her skills in writing progress notes and developing treatment plans. “While progress notes and treatment plans aren’t always the most engaging tasks, I know that they are essential to effective care,” she explained.

During her third year, McKayla completed her practicum as a Restorative Justice Therapist Trainee at Restorative Justice of Youth Oakland and also worked as a Family Therapist Trainee at Carl B. Metoyer Center for Family Counseling. In both of these roles, she learned a lot about being comfortable with silence and taking care of herself after sessions because some of the things her clients shared were extremely heavy. At Carl B. Metoyer Center for Family Counseling, she had her first experience with mandated counseling. “I had to reflect deeply on my role, knowing that some clients might initially see me as part of the system,” she recalled. “I learned not to beat myself up, but also to emphasize confidentiality and work to show them that I was a safe space.” McKayla realized she had to be okay with the fact that some days her clients didn’t want to be there and sometimes they seemed mad at her, when they were really just frustrated with the system. “We talk a lot about theories and orientations, but the type of therapist and person I really want to be is one that honors humanity,” she reflected. “And that’s what Restorative Justice of Oakland and Carl B. Metoyer Center for Family Counseling helped me realize.”

From 2022 until January of this year, in addition to her coursework and practicum experiences, McKayla worked as a Provisional Mental Health Practitioner at Creative Counseling and Studio in Omaha, NE, providing telehealth therapy to individuals, couples, and families. Their founder and CEO, Yasmin Henderson, designed the practice with diverse populations in mind, which really drew McKayla to their work. “I really wanted to learn from Yasmin,” she shared. “Creative arts therapy is such a powerful thing in Black and Brown communities because that's how we speak - with our art, with our music, with our images, and with our words.” McKayla described it as a beautiful place to learn and grow and is very grateful for the experience.

McKayla’s dissertation, which she just completed, is titled “Beyond Bars: The intersection between race, reentry, and resilience.” Her inspiration for this topic was a family friend who spent over thirty years in prison, then struggled to adapt to life after incarceration. Once she had her own son, he became part of her inspiration as well. “After becoming a mother, I experienced profound postpartum anxiety about raising a Black boy in America and often felt deep fear about the realities we see and witness that impact Black bodies,” she reflected. “So that makes it so much more powerful for me - it's for every Black and Brown child and their caregivers.” In her dissertation process, McKayla interviewed 16-28 year old Black men about their experiences with incarceration and admitted that she was deeply moved by their stories and the wisdom they shared. “What I’ve learned so far is that community is so important,” she explained. “They need genuine spaces that actually honor their intersectional identities and lived experiences to help them decide what kind of men they desire to become.”

In her second year at the Wright Institute, McKayla became a DEI partner. In that role, she organized an event to honor Black psychologists. “That was very empowering for me, to look at where we started and who are the people who inspired us to be in this field,” she recalled. “Thinking about who the first person that looked like you in this field was, because there's still not that many, that keeps you going because you see they did it!” Later, as a DEI fellow, McKayla chose to focus on other aspects of her identity, like being a parent and having friends and family impacted by the carceral system. Earlier this year, she led an event called “Parenting and Academia” that brought together students who are parents or are planning to be, professors who are parents and/or became parents while they were students, and others in the field. They were able to discuss what parenting looks like for them and how they balance parenting with school, teaching, and/or working as a psychologist in the field and brainstorm ideas to help support parents. The second event McKayla led with two other DEI fellows, was titled “The Fire Beneath the Ashes,” and looked at disenfranchised grief, religious community support in the Muslim community, and the experiences of incarcerated young Black men. “It was the most beautiful event I’ve been to at the Wright,” McKayla shared proudly. “When the event was supposed to end, nobody left and people were still speaking life into the guest panelists, who were formerly incarcerated individuals from all walks of life, affirming how valued they are in the community as their full selves and how they choose to show up now, not because of their mistakes. It was so heartwarming!”

Since 2022, McKayla has also been on the leadership team of the Black Student Union, working to address the needs of Black students at the Wright Institute, in both the Clinical and Counseling Programs. “The most challenging part is that we can’t solve every challenge that arises solely because of shared identity, as much as we would like to, because we care so deeply about the well-being of Black students,” she explained. “We’re focused on equity and fairness, but some challenges we cannot solve because they are part of the universal experience of being a PsyD student, regardless of background.” The most rewarding part of the role for McKayla has been providing spaces to curate Black joy among members of the community as well as spaces to mourn and grieve together.

During her time at the Wright Institute, there have been two professors who have had a profound impact on McKayla’s experience: Dr. Veronique Thompson and Dr. Sudhanva Rajagopal. McKayla described Dr. Thompson, who was her Case Conference leader for her first two years as a “brilliant and beautiful human being” who has pushed her and supported her throughout her journey. “She has seen me through every season of this experience, as a student and as a mom,” McKayla reflected. “She was the first professor I told I was pregnant and she kisses my baby every time she sees him.” Dr. Thompson also pushed McKayla to find the leader within herself as she encouraged her to take on leadership roles in the DEI department and in the BSU. Dr. Rajagopal is McKayla’s dissertation chair and has been an amazing mentor for her. “He really stepped up for me and has been so supportive,” she shared. “He shows up for me with so much care and he holds me accountable, not only as a student, but as a fellow parent.” Both professors see McKayla not just as a student, but as a full human, and have been there to support her in all of her endeavors for which she is extremely grateful.

The most valuable lesson McKayla has learned during her time at the Wright Institute is the importance of building community. “While pursuing a degree in clinical psychology, we learn how to create and hold brave, safe spaces and discuss really difficult things,” she explained. “I would say to build your community as soon as you get here and be mindful of what your values are and what kind of person you want to be and surround yourself with people who emulate that.” She also emphasized that community doesn’t have to only come from within the Wright Institute - you may find your community at church or a local running club instead. McKayla’s advice to fellow students is to learn how and when to rest and to honor their need for rest. She admits finding balance between school, work, and her personal life with a toddler at home has been her biggest challenge during her time as a student and is something she still struggles with. “Living life and also being a student has been difficult,” she admitted. “You have to have a certain structure and a certain type of balance to be able to continue on.”

In May of 2025, McKayla began a job as a Psychological Associate at Agape Health Psychological Services Inc., where she’s working as a virtual therapist. “This is the first time I’ve had the opportunity to work with caregivers who are experiencing postpartum depression and anxiety, which I also experienced,” she explained. “I think it's a beautiful experience to heal together because I'm not too far removed from that.” McKayla is excited to have the opportunity to talk about the messy and ugly parts of parenthood and bring to light some of the feelings that parents often hesitate to talk about openly.

Outside of her busy work and school schedule, McKayla enjoys cooking and spending time with her toddler son. “I always tell people that, if I wasn’t a therapist, I’d either be a private chef or a chef influencer,” she shared. “I love cooking so much!” She recently bought her two-year-old a toddler stool so he’s able to help her out in the kitchen. They had a pizza night where McKayla made dough from scratch, then her son assisted with adding the sauce and toppings and got to eat his own creation for dinner. Aside from cooking, McKayla spends her limited spare time playing with her son and really soaking in the toddler phase because it passes so quickly.

In August, McKayla will begin her internship at Alameda Family Services and she’s excited to find out what her role there will entail. After graduating from the Wright Institute next year, McKayla isn’t sure what the future holds for her, but she’s excited to find out! She hopes to do her postdoctoral fellowship at a community mental health agency and continue to focus her work in Black and Brown communities. “My goal, whether I’m in private practice or working in community health without ‘trainee’ attached to my title,” she explained, “is to create a space for my clients that feels like the hair salon or the barbershop, or other community spaces where I felt like I could let my hair down - literally - and talk about what was going on in whatever way I chose, while being in a vulnerable position and still feeling heard, seen, and supported by someone who, in that moment, was literally touching the crown of my head.” Community support is very important to McKayla and she wants to help provide that for her clients. As she nears the end of her time at the Wright Institute, McKayla feels prepared to achieve her career goals because of the community she’s built around herself and the extensive training she’s received through her practicum experiences.