In allocating more than $200 million in grant money aimed at mentoring Indian tribal youth, Justice Department grantees over five years relied too much on sole-source contracts and provided lax enforcement of rules against contractor lobbying and conflicts of interest, a watchdog found.
The department’s Office of Justice Programs, as part of its Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, awarded the Boys and Girls Clubs of America $201.6 million from 2008-2013 to administer national and tribal mentoring programs. The after-school clubs provide a “safe place, caring adult mentors, friendship and high-impact youth development programs,” mostly to American Indians at risk of joining gangs, as noted in a report released on Thursday of last week by the Justice Department’s Office of Inspector General.
The Boys and Girls Clubs—the largest recipients of those grants—in turn sub-awarded 45 contracts to 14 vendors, totaling about $3.1 million.
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