A New Way of Life is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports formerly incarcerated people through housing, legal services, family reunification, advocacy, and health and wellness programs. Its work is centered on helping justice-impacted women heal, rebuild stability, and lead in their communities. This matters because successful reentry often depends on safe housing, practical support, and opportunities for long-term transformation.

A New Way of Life Reentry Project is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1998 by Susan Burton. The organization supports formerly incarcerated people, with a strong focus on women, through a model that connects housing, healing, legal support, and leadership development. Its mission is to empower communities with opportunity where justice-impacted women heal, excel, and lead while disrupting systems of oppression and harm. A New Way of Life describes itself as a nationally acclaimed reentry program for women and has built its work around the belief that formerly incarcerated people should be at the forefront of creating solutions to the incarceration crisis. The organization is based in Los Angeles and also operates services in New Orleans and North Carolina.
A New Way of Life provides safe housing, pro bono legal services, family reunification support, advocacy and leadership development, and health and wellness services. Its approach is multifaceted and designed to promote healing, power, and opportunity for formerly incarcerated people while working to address the broader effects of mass incarceration. The organization also supports reintegration through supportive services, civil rights and dignity work, social change, and job placement, training, and entrepreneurship.
A New Way of Life helps formerly incarcerated people, especially women rebuilding their lives after incarceration. Its programs also support impacted parents seeking reunification with their children and communities affected by poverty, over-incarceration, and disenfranchisement.
Support for A New Way of Life helps fund a reentry model that connects housing, legal support, healing, family reunification, and leadership development. The organization’s work stands out because it is grounded in lived experience and centers justice-impacted women not only as participants, but also as leaders and changemakers. For people looking to donate to A New Way of Life, this is a way to support both immediate reentry needs and longer-term community transformation.
A New Way of Life reports that 1,500+ people have found support in its safe homes, 400+ people have been reunited with their children, 3,400+ individuals have received pro bono legal services, and 200+ women have received training through its WOJO Leadership Lab. The organization also states that its services cost less than half the cost of incarceration and reflects two decades of freedom work.
A New Way of Life Reentry Project is a registered 501(c)(3) nonprofit with EIN 95-4782503. The organization provides public information about its services, leadership, annual reports, contact details, donation pathways, and program areas. These are useful trust signals for people asking whether A New Way of Life is legit or safe to donate to.