Dr. Tamara Lyn
Director
Member, New Business Development Marketing & Governance Committees
Dr. Tamara Lyn has acquired unique experience and insights into all aspects of leadership and professional development during decades of service in high intensity correctional settings. Dr. Lyn served in a variety of clinical and executive leadership roles in federal corrections, including oversight of all psychology programs in the Bureau of Prisons between 2015 and 2020. Her career culminated in the role of Warden, where she was one of a very small cohort of women in the position. Working as a Warden during a global pandemic, Dr. Lyn developed deep insights into crisis management for teams and individuals, fostered psychological safety, and taught skills for resilience and learning agility.Dr. Lyn's current work as an executive coach and consulting psychologist focuses on high impact, high stakes leadership roles. She incorporates aspects of positive psychology into her work with individuals and teams.
Dr. Lyn graduated with honors from Harvard College and holds master’s and doctorate degrees in psychology from The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor. She is an elected member of the American Psychological Association’s Board of Directors, the world’s largest professional organization for psychologists, representing over 157,000 members. Dr. Lyn is recognized as a Certified Correctional Executive by the American Correctional Association and is Board certified as a specialist in Organizational and Business Consulting Psychology. She holds the high honor of Fellow status in APA divisions representing consulting psychology and public service psychology. Her most recent article, “The Surprising Journey from Psychologist to Warden,” was published in Psychological Services, the journal of APA’s Division 18, Public Service Psychology, in December 2022.
Dr. Lyn is inspired by the words of the late civil rights activist and U.S. Congressman John Lewis, who said, “Do not get lost in a sea of despair. Be hopeful, be optimistic. Our struggle is not the struggle of a day, a week, a month, or a year, it is the struggle of a lifetime. Never, ever be afraid to make some noise and get in good trouble, necessary trouble.”