About

Tyler Foster grew up facing significant challenges, including being raised by a single mother, experiencing childhood homelessness, and witnessing the devastating impact of incarceration on friends and family members. As a teenager, Tyler had his own encounter with the criminal legal system when he was arrested and incarcerated for several months. During this time, he endured solitary confinement and faced the harsh realities of the criminal legal system, including the criminalization of poverty, the dehumanizing conditions of incarceration, and the systemic denial of opportunities for meaningful rehabilitation.

While incarcerated, Tyler became a “jailhouse lawyer,” where he assisted other incarcerated people with their cases, taught legal empowerment workshops, and advocated for more humane conditions of confinement. Most of the people he assisted faced significant barriers, such as a lack of formal education, economic hardship, and mental health challenges. Despite these countless challenges, Tyler found an unwavering sense of camaraderie and was inspired by the perseverance and resilience of those around him. This experience ignited his passion for criminal legal reform and led him to attend law school. Tyler currently attends the University of Memphis School of Law on a full-tuition scholarship. After graduation, he plans to continue working in the criminal legal reform field.  

Tyler serves on the Board of Directors of the Formerly Incarcerated College Graduates Network (FICGN), helping to shape the organization’s advocacy and policy efforts to expand educational and employment opportunities for formerly incarcerated individuals. He is also involved with the Jailhouse Lawyer Initiative, which equips directly-impacted individuals and communities with legal knowledge and advocacy tools to break cycles of incarceration and challenge oppressive systems. Tyler is frequently sought for his expertise in criminal legal reform and has contributed to initiatives at prestigious universities, including Vanderbilt, NYU, Georgetown, and Harvard.

Before law school, Tyler gained valuable experience as a paralegal and investigator with a prominent criminal defense law firm and through internships with public defender offices and a federal judge. He previously served on the Board of Directors for Chattanoogans in Action for Love, Equality, and Benevolence (CALEB), a nonprofit organization focused on criminal legal reform, education equity, and economic mobility. He also served as the co-chair of CALEB’s Criminal Justice Task Force, where he was instrumental in building community partnerships and advancing criminal legal reform initiatives.  

Tyler earned his B.A. summa cum laude from the University of Memphis, graduating two years early. He was awarded the Dean’s Scholarship and was inducted into the Phi Kappa Phi and Omicron Delta Kappa honor societies.

Tyler’s journey from incarceration to law school drives his unwavering dedication to transforming the criminal legal system. By combining his lived experience and professional expertise, Tyler seeks to advance bold reforms that dismantle oppressive systems and prioritize compassion, equity, and justice.