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Former Inmate Finds New Purpose After Pardon in East Tennessee
New Purpose, a recovery-focused business, helps people leaving incarceration reenter the workforce and community.
Published on Feb. 8, 2026
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In East Tennessee, a man named Alan Roberts has founded New Purpose, a recovery-focused business that provides work opportunities, accountability, and mentorship for people leaving incarceration. Roberts himself received a gubernatorial pardon in 2025 after more than a decade of sustained recovery and community involvement. The pardon removed legal obstacles that had limited his ability to operate fully in the reentry space, allowing New Purpose to expand partnerships, pursue contracts, and operate with more legitimacy.
Why it matters
Clemency, when used carefully, can address the problem of legal and practical barriers that often prevent people with past convictions from finding stable employment, a key factor in successful reentry and reduced recidivism. New Purpose represents a model of reentry that is structured, demanding, and rooted in the belief that accountability continues after someone leaves prison.
The details
New Purpose is built around the idea that people leaving incarceration don't fail because they lack supervision, but because they lack structure, employment, and accountability that treats them like adults with something to lose. The organization provides lawful work, expectations, and a pathway back into the workforce for men who have already paid their debt to the justice system.
- In December 2025, Roberts received a gubernatorial pardon.
- New Purpose has been operating in Anderson County for several years.
The players
Alan Roberts
The founder of New Purpose, a recovery-focused business in East Tennessee. Roberts received a gubernatorial pardon in 2025 after more than a decade of sustained recovery and community involvement.
New Purpose
A recovery-focused business in Clinton, Tennessee that provides work opportunities, accountability, and mentorship for people leaving incarceration.
What they’re saying
“A pardon is not a declaration of innocence. It is an official acknowledgment that punishment has been served and that continued legal restrictions no longer serve public safety.”
— Brandon Burley, Criminal Justice Educator (knoxtntoday.com)
What’s next
New Purpose plans to continue expanding its partnerships and pursuing new contracts to provide more work opportunities for people leaving incarceration in the East Tennessee region.
The takeaway
New Purpose's model of providing structured, accountable work opportunities for people with criminal histories demonstrates how clemency can remove barriers and allow successful reentry, benefiting both individuals and the broader community.
