PDF: Audit PDF: General counsel letter
A state audit of a $400,000 federal grant managed by Chattanooga Endeavors found problems with goals and purchases and recommended the state Department of Correction discontinue the program with the organization.
“The basic premise for the grant is not being accomplished and has very little hope of success,” the July audit by a Tennessee Department of Correction compliance officer states. “I cannot recommend continuing the contractual relationship with Chattanooga Endeavors/Nashville Works,” the auditor wrote.
The purpose of the grant was for Endeavors, which helps former inmates find new jobs and connects them with local resources, to set up and operate a Nashville office – called Nashville Works – that also would connect prison inmates with area employers.
Endeavors CEO Tim Dempsey said problems with the prison inmate-employment grant are a result of the down economy, which has made it difficult for former inmates to find jobs. The worst outcome, he said, is money already spent by the nonprofit organization may not be reimbursed by the federal government.