[2] Wright started her teaching career in September 1972 as a teacher in the Prince George's County Public Schools system.

[7] She oversaw the implementation of the state's Literacy-Based Promotion Act of 2013, which retained third-grade students with low reading proficiency skills, and the Early Learning Collaborative Act, which provided additional funding to school districts that collaborated with Head Start to provide prekindergarten programs to four-year-olds.

[7][8][10] In May 2016, after the U.S. Department of Education issued guidelines requiring school systems to allow students to use restrooms and locker rooms consistent with their gender identity, Wright initially said that she would abide by the federal guidelines[11] but later said that she would take no action and continue adhering to the Religious Liberty Accommodations Act following pressure from Republican state lawmakers and Governor Phil Bryant.

[20] In July 2024, Wright proposed reforms to Maryland's literacy policy that would require students who fail to meet state reading standards by the end of the third grade to be held back.

[21] Following backlash from parents, education advocates, and members of the Maryland State Board of Education,[22] the proposed rule was adjusted to require a student's parents to agree to enroll their child into free supplemental reading support programs to advance to the fourth grade if they fail to meet state reading standards, after which it was approved by the board in an 11–1 vote.