W&L Outcomes: Tara Trinley ’25

Office of Communications and Public Affairs
July 22, 2025

Tara Trinley '25
Majors: History and Eastern European and Russian area studies
Hometown: Palm Beach, Florida

What are your post-graduation plans?

I received the Fulbright for Moldova, but I have accepted an officer commission with the U.S. Army National Guard, and my intention is to go to law school after completing my training.

What did you study at W&L, and what are some skills or learnings you will take from your academic experience into the professional world?

I dual majored in history and Eastern European and Russian area studies at W&L. My foreign language skills have already taken me across the globe. I'm grateful to have had so much time abroad in Armenia, Georgia and England with the Boren and Fulbright-Hays scholarships. It is my time abroad that honed my ability to think on my feet, critically think and adapt. Those skills will forever support me in the Armed Services. The combination of a deep understanding of global history, along with my travel and language, make me uniquely suited to support soldiers of all different backgrounds. From my history courses, I hope that my ability to close read, research and write will bring me success in law school.

How did your career plans evolve throughout your time at W&L? Did you always know what you wanted to do?

I always knew that I wanted to live a life of public service, but I didn't know what it would look like. I took economics classes, politics classes - anything I could get my hands on. I went abroad to Denmark and learned my passions aren't best represented by commercial pursuits, and I learned during my 1789 Constitutional Convention course it's not politics that motivates me, but a pure love for the rule of law itself. During my freshman year, Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine - a seismic geopolitical decision I could not look away from. Slowly but surely I rekindled my old love for history and international affairs, and I found a new talent in foreign languages and Mock Trial. I confirmed my strength lies in the law, and I realized I'm much better at executing and interpreting the law than I am at crafting it. I love my new career opportunity with the Army, and I hope my experience in law school will make me a better-informed service member and global citizen.

Which faculty member had the most impact on you, and what did you learn from them (either inside or outside the classroom)?

The two faculty members who have had the biggest impact on me were my major adviser, Dr. Anna Brodsky, and my thesis adviser, Dr. Alana Holland. Dr. Brodsky is a staple of the Russian Department at Washington and Lee, and her personal experience and anecdotes as a Soviet dissident and emigree will forever inform the way I look at the post-Soviet space. Dr. Holland came to Washington and Lee my senior year and took her responsibility as my new thesis adviser in stride. Her predecessor and my former adviser, Dr. Bidlack, is hard to follow, but Prof. Holland has already proved to be an exceptional educator and tutor in her own right. I suspect I will always be learning something new from her, and I can't wait to see what she does at W&L.

What clubs, organizations, athletic teams or other extracurriculars were you involved in that had an impact on you?

Participating in Mock Trial was one of the best decisions I made at W&L. It was physically and intellectually demanding, but I'm proud to say I was on the first W&L team to go to AMTA nationals in eight years!

What internships or other summer experiences did you partake in, and how did those experiences shape you and your career plans?

Over the last four years, I've tried to use my summers to explore the intersections of law, history and intercultural exchange. This year, I remotely interned with the U.S. Department of State's EducationUSA Advising Center in Armenia, where I worked with students navigating college applications while learning first-hand how U.S soft power operates abroad. Another year, I was a legal intern at Ter-Tachatyan law firm in Yerevan, where I got hands-on experience with motions practice and learned how legal arguments are built from the ground up. Both of those experiences helped me connect my academic interests in history and Russian area studies with real-world legal and policy questions. They helped me succeed at Oxford, where I studied the historical development of international law, and they confirmed for me that law school was the next right step.

What's been one of your favorite experiences over the last four years?

I had the privilege to go abroad for 13 months to Georgia and Armenia. The experience skyrocketed my foreign language skills, introduced me to my wonderful host families and opened my eyes to a corner of the world many Americans will never see. While I was abroad, the frozen conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan reignited. That experience forever changed me and reinforced my interest in international human rights law and laws of armed conflict.

What career-related advice would you give to next year's graduating class?

Meet the moment. Whatever the task, be it an internship application, a particularly challenging assignment or a daunting research collaboration with a professor, the best thing you can do is fully invest in what that particular moment requires - nothing more (you don't want to overextend yourself) and nothing less (you don't want to underperform). If you find yourself in a position of leadership, like I did, that's awesome. Give credit to your team and take responsibility for the team's mistakes. As W&L students and as leaders, we have an obligation to lift as we climb. Take care of yourself Class of 2026, and, most importantly, take care of each other. That's all we have.

Who or what has inspired you along the way?

My late grandmother, Doris Trinley, and my late great-grandfather, Jack Lifshin, inspire me. If I talk too long about either of them, we'll be here all day, so I will leave you with what their lives impressed upon me in the short time that I knew them.

My late grandmother was blessed with an incredible intellect and supported our hometown with 25 years of municipal service. Even though she has been gone for 11 years now, whenever I interact with someone who knew her or served under her as town commissioner, they have more stories to tell me. I am always floored by her grace and excellence as a leader. Gram is and was the blueprint. She taught me that we are what we leave behind.

My great-grandfather passed away in 2014. He was a gentle soul, a true gentleman and a veteran. My grandfather's service made a deep impression on me, and I'm inspired by his courage to serve in the U.S. Navy as an American Jew at the height of World War II. Looking back on my time with him, he never said a bad word about anyone or anything, which is crazy. He had every reason to be bitter - he had seen the worst of humanity. My Grandpa Jack taught me true strength doesn't need to announce itself - it is kind, and it endures.

Is there anything else you'd like to share?

My time at W&L would not have been possible without the Johnson Scholarship. I'd like to thank Rupert Johnson and his family.