Tranell Guthrie is originally from Buffalo New York . She obtained a Bachelors of Science in Criminal Justice from State University of New York (SUNY) College at Brockport August 1997. While attending SUNY Brockport Tranell was an active Treasurer and President of the Black Student Union (Organization for Students of African Descent), and was also a member of the Collegiate Science and Technology Entry Program (C-STEP) and the Ronald E. McNair Scholar Program. Along with studying abroad at the University of Ghana, in Legon, Ghana West Africa, Tranell also interned with the Monroe County Office of the Public Defender, interviewing inmates to determine if they qualify for a public defender.

After graduating from SUNY Brockport Tranell spent one semester at The University of Buffalo enrolled in the Masters of Applied Public Policy Program. Deciding to venture out and see more than the Upstate New York area, Tranell made a swift decision, and within one semester transferred to Morgan State University in Baltimore Maryland (Jan 1998). She is a graduate student in the City and Regional Planning Program with all course work complete and thesis remaining.

As a gradate student at Morgan State University Tranell interned with various organizations in Baltimore Maryland. Her first intern was with Citizens Planning and Housing Association (CPHA) in which she was an intern with the transportation department. Following her interest in redeveloping the inner city, Tranell interned with a non-profit housing organization in West Baltimore called Harlem Park Revitalization Corporation (HPRC), as a Housing and Community Development Assistant. Her final intern was with the Mass Transit Administration as a service planning intern.

After working in the non-profit and public sectors Tranell decided to visit the Private sector. She has been working for a year with Parsons Brincherhoff Quade and Douglas, (Baltimore) as a Transportation Planner.

With her background in Criminal Justice and current interests in City and Regional Planning, Tranell is interested in planning for ex-offenders once they are released from prison and are faced with reintegrating into the communities. Reducing the recidivism rate for offenders is a major concern. Many cities spend large portions of their budgets planning to incarcerate criminals, but what happens to these "criminals" after five to ten years of incarceration? They leave the Criminal Justice system with more physical and mental problems than they entered with; however the expectations of the criminal justice system and the public is for them to have learned their lesson and made preparations to live a better life after being isolated from the world for numerous years.

Tranell plans to research how mapping tools such as Geographic Information Systems (GIS) ArcView can display crime in the City of Baltimore and how that as a tool can predict areas in need of help, and as equally important view where repeated offenders are located and what programs can be implemented in those communities which will help reduce the recidivism rate of offenders.