I'm a nonprofit fellow placed in a city government office, working on a specific project for a 1 year contact. My nonprofit sponsor was so impressed with my midyear and 3rd quarter presentations (which my dept director attended and was enthusiastic about) that they pulled enough money together to find a 2nd year of my fellowship! Imagine my surprise then when I went to my director to get the second year approved and they started dragging their heels and being evasive. I've been pushing for real detail about why they'd hesitate about getting a second year fellow at no cost and I think I finally got a few dribbles of honest justification. They are apparently worried about how efficient I am, the quantity and quality of the work that I've produced… Especially funny given that I've had zero performance review problems and never a single mention about any issues before. Director said that this is ” a high performing office” and dangled approval of my second year over my head, pending submission of better quality products. Refused to give any clarification about what exactly higher quality meant or what above deliverables I've already got on my calendar would make any difference. I managed to not explode at them.
They're going to be awfully surprised when I go around them to talk to all of the other contacts I've made in the city. It may be fun and games politics for them but it's livelihood and support for my family for me.