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CHICAGO - A former Chicago-area nonprofit executive has been sentenced to federal prison for orchestrating fraud schemes that siphoned nearly $2 million in public funds.
Barbara Harris, 55, was sentenced to 12 months in prison on March 20 after pleading guilty to wire fraud. Harris previously served as executive director of the Center for Community Academic Success Partnerships, which received government grants to provide after-school programs.
The backstory:
From 2012 to 2017, Harris and another executive, Tony Bell, submitted grant applications that inflated projected expenses and falsely claimed the involvement of subcontractors, including nonprofits they controlled.
Authorities said the subcontractors provided no services, resulting in approximately $1.8 million in losses to the Illinois Department of Education.
Prosecutors said Harris also carried out a separate scheme involving South Suburban Community Services, where she served as co-executive director. Between 2021 and 2023, she fraudulently obtained funding through the AmeriCorps VISTA program by misrepresenting how volunteers would be used, despite knowing the programs were already funded. The scheme caused an additional loss of nearly $100,00
Harris admitted her role in both schemes as part of her guilty plea. Bell, 65, of Matteson, also pleaded guilty to wire fraud and is scheduled to be sentenced on Aug. 21.
What they're saying:
"This type of crime erodes the public’s faith in non-profit organizations generally and the federal programs that fund these organizations," Assistant U.S. Attorney Caitlin Walgamuth argued in the government’s sentencing memorandum. "Additionally, because the misappropriated grant funds were competitive, Harris’s conduct likely denied other organizations critical federal funding opportunities."
The Source: The information in this report came from the U.S. Attorney's Office, Northern District of Illinois.