Questions are mounting as a nonprofit with no criminal justice experience continues to hide how it spent $800,000 in federal grant money intended to reduce crime in rural South Carolina communities.
Key Takeaways
- The Lower Richland Alumni Foundation received an $800,000 federal grant from Rep. Jim Clyburn in April 2023 for an anti-crime initiative despite having no prior criminal justice experience.
- Financial transparency is severely lacking, with heavily-redacted public records making it impossible to track how most of the grant money has been spent.
- The foundation has shown questionable financial management, spending 80% on fundraising and only 18% on actual programming, far below charity watchdog recommendations.
- Local partners including the Richland County Sheriff’s Department reported minimal involvement in the initiative, contradicting claims of extensive collaboration.
- A separate $156,000 county grant to the same foundation faced similar accountability issues, raising further concerns about the organization’s ability to manage public funds.
No Experience, Big Money
In April 2023, Richland County Democrats announced with great fanfare the Community Cares Project, an $800,000 federally funded anti-crime initiative secured through U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn. The Lower Richland Alumni Foundation, a small nonprofit with zero criminal justice experience, was tasked with managing this substantial sum targeting crime reduction in rural communities of Eastover, Gadsden, and Hopkins. This unusual arrangement immediately raised eyebrows among accountability watchdogs, as the foundation was primarily known for hosting community events rather than implementing complex crime prevention programs.
“This organization felt it was past time that we stand up and regain our community,” said Cheryl Harris, Lower Richland Alumni Foundation
The foundation claims to have partnered with the Richland County Sheriff’s Department and other local organizations to implement its crime reduction strategy. However, investigations have revealed that many of these supposed partnerships were minimal at best and nonexistent at worst. Of all the purported public partners, only the town of Eastover and the Richland County Recreation Commission confirmed any substantial collaboration. This disconnect between claimed partnerships and reality further fuels concerns about how the $800,000 is actually being utilized.
Financial Opacity and Questionable Management
Perhaps most concerning is the near-total lack of transparency regarding how the foundation has spent the massive federal grant. Public records requests have yielded heavily-redacted documents, making it impossible to track where most of the money has gone. The foundation claims to have launched over 60 events and programs, but has provided scant evidence detailing their specific role, impact, or financial investment in these initiatives. The little information available shows just $65,000 distributed to community programs and $36,000 paid as salary to Cheryl Harris in 2023.
Rep. Clyburn has defended his decision to direct the grant to this inexperienced organization, maintaining his focus on community improvement rather than results-based accountability. This liberal approach to taxpayer dollars typifies the disconnect between Democrat funding priorities and actual community needs. While the Community Cares Project claimed to improve law enforcement relations and community-based policing, Sheriff Leon Lott’s department reported minimal involvement, contradicting the foundation’s marketing materials.
“I couldn’t tell you what all they were doing,” said Sheriff Leon Lott
Pattern of Mismanagement
The federal grant isn’t the only public funding raising red flags. The foundation received a separate $156,000 grant from Richland County to create educational centers, but quickly encountered problems justifying expenditures. This led to a reallocation of funds and further questions about the organization’s financial competence. Financial discrepancies appear throughout the foundation’s reporting, painting a troubling picture of an organization heavily dependent on public funding while demonstrating poor financial stewardship.
Charity watchdogs recommend that legitimate nonprofits spend at least 65% of their budgets on actual programming. The Lower Richland Alumni Foundation falls drastically short of this standard, spending a shocking 80% on fundraising activities and a mere 18% on programming. This inverted spending priority raises serious questions about whether the organization understands its charitable mission or is simply using it as a vehicle to access public funding. Multiple inconsistencies between different financial reports further compound concerns about truthful accounting.
“I support Community Project Funding requests that will improve the lives of my constituents by responding to a demonstrated need in their communities,” said U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn
As scrutiny increases, local community members and taxpayer advocates are demanding answers about where the $800,000 has gone and what measurable crime reduction outcomes have been achieved. The troubling lack of transparency, questionable partnerships, and demonstrated pattern of financial mismanagement suggest that this Democrat-championed initiative may be yet another example of government waste cloaked in noble intentions. South Carolina taxpayers deserve full accountability for every dollar of the $800,000 federal grant meant to make their communities safer.
