Access is a Foundation, Not a Finish Line: Reflections on Reentry United 2026

Two years ago, I was sitting in a prison cell. Today, as my official parole discharge date approaches in October, I found myself sitting alongside more than 350 advocates, educators, and formerly incarcerated leaders at the 5th Annual Reentry United Conference at Grand Valley State University.

The contrast is entirely surreal. But sitting in those breakout sessions on August 14, listening to the very people working to dismantle the barriers I once faced, I was reminded of a critical truth: reentry is not a linear timeline. It is a lifelong process of reintegration.

One of the most profound sessions I attended was led by Michael Taylor, the Program Coordinator for the Michigan Collaborative to End Mass Incarceration (MI-CEMI), Peer Navigator at A Brighter Way, and author of First Ten Moves to Forever Freedom. Michael outlined the "Eight Domains of Long-Term Reentry," challenging the room to stop asking returning citizens, "How long have they been home?" and to start asking, "What developmental work are they actively navigating?" Prison systematically interrupts human development. You go in at 18 and come out decades later, yet society expects you to adapt seamlessly. Taylor’s point that we must reconcile a complex identity—bridging the person we were, the person we became to survive inside, and the person we are expected to be today—struck a deep chord with my own journey.

Equally powerful was the discussion about entrepreneurship inside prison, led by Kiley Doll, Founder of Wings of Growth and Business in a Box. She highlighted a reality we see every day at Humanity for Prisoners: an immense, untapped entrepreneurial spirit behind bars. Too often, men and women inside are told that their past defines their limits. But as Kiley pointed out, if someone knew how to run an illicit enterprise on the streets, they already understand supply chain, marketing, and pricing. They just need mentorship and capital to redirect those skills toward legitimate, community-building businesses.

I was also deeply moved by the GVSU Bellamy Creek Campus presentation, led by Adam Grant, Chief Executive Officer of A Brighter Way and Bellamy Creek Fellow at GVSU. As someone preparing to begin my undergraduate Applied Leadership degree at Calvin University this September, I found it inspiring to hear student leaders like Conner McCowan, Inaugural President of the Student Voice Council. They aren't just taking classes; they are setting academic expectations and demanding to be heard as true stakeholders in their education. As the presenters noted, putting people in a room just for optics isn't inclusion—it’s tokenism. Giving students a place in a functional feedback loop restores their agency and dignity.

Ultimately, the overarching theme of the day was clear: giving someone access to an opportunity is only the foundation. The finish line is ensuring they have the support, mental health resources, and community infrastructure needed to cross it.

At Humanity for Prisoners, we answer the calls of those still waiting at the starting line. We fight for their dignity so that when their second chance finally comes, they are ready. Attending Reentry United 2026 reinforced exactly why we do this work—and why we can never stop looking forward.