Enhancing School Capacity to Address Youth Violence

Deadline: May 3, 2023

With this solicitation, OJJDP seeks to support targeted efforts to address youth violence through implementing evidence-based prevention and intervention efforts in a school-based setting (K–12th grade only). The goals of the program are to (1) reduce the incidence of school violence through improved school safety and climate and (2) prevent youth violence, delinquency, and victimization in the targeted community. This solicitation is funded to support the purposes authorized under the Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School Violence Act of 2018 (or STOP School Violence Act).

This solicitation aims to increase school safety through the development and expansion of violence prevention and reduction programs and strategies. Through this initiative, OJJDP expects applicants to utilize a collaborative approach between schools and community-based organizations (CBOs) to develop and implement these strategies. Funded sites under this initiative will operate from the following three principles:

• Relationships between schools and CBOs require open lines of communication and a shared commitment at the leadership level to accomplish the core goal of increasing school safety.
• Key contributors to youth violence include risk factors within the individual, family, and school/community domains. Funded strategies must address all three to be successful.
• Families are critical partners in dealing with school violence, and their engagement is a critical ingredient for success.

Review the grant and how to apply.

School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP)

Deadline: May 17, 2023

The 2023 COPS Office School Violence Prevention Program is a competitive program that provides funding directly to States, units of local government, Indian tribes, and their public agencies to be used to improve security at schools and on school grounds in the jurisdiction of the grantee through evidence-based school safety programs.  Up to $73 million is available for this program.

Review SVPP grant and how to apply.

Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resiliency in Education)

Deadline: May 2, 2022

The purpose of Project AWARE is to develop a sustainable infrastructure for school-based mental health programs and services. It is expected that the recipient will build a collaborative partnership that includes the State Education Agency (SEA), the Local Education Agency (LEA), the State Mental Health Agency (SMHA), community-based providers of behavioral health care services, school personnel, community organizations, families, and school-aged youth. Based on a public health model, this partnership will implement mental health related promotion, awareness, prevention, intervention and resilience activities to ensure that students have access and are connected to appropriate and effective behavioral health services. SAMHSA expects that this program will promote the healthy social and emotional development of school-aged youth and prevent youth violence in school settings.

Review the Project AWARE grant and how to apply.

COPS Hiring Program (CHP)

Deadline: May 11, 2023

The 2023 COPS Hiring Program is a competitive grant program designed to provide funds directly to law enforcement agencies to hire new or rehire existing career law enforcement officers to increase their community policing capacity and crime prevention efforts.  All local, state, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies that have primary law enforcement authority are eligible to apply.  Up to $224.5 million is available for this program.

Review the CHP grant and how to apply.

Preventing School Violence: BJA’s STOP School Violence Program

Deadline: May 8, 2023

Through this opportunity, the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) seeks applications for funding to support and assist county, local, territorial, and tribal jurisdictions in improving efforts to reduce violent crime in and around schools.

Eligible Applicants:

• City or township governments
• County governments
• Independent school districts
• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
• Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Private institutions of higher education
• Public and state-controlled institutions of higher education
• State governments
• Other
  • Units of local governments

Review the BJA grant and how to apply.

School Emergency Response to Violence (Project SERV)

Project SERV funds short-term education-related services for local educational agencies (LEAs) and institutions of higher education (IHEs) to help them recover from a violent or traumatic event in which the learning environment has been disrupted.

Project SERV funds for most violent or traumatic events are managed by the Department’s Office of Safe and Supportive Schools.

Project SERV funds in response to a major natural disaster are managed by the Department’s Disaster Recovery Unit (DRU).

Review the Project SERV grant and how to apply.

STOP THE BLEED Grant Program

STOP THE BLEED® Day (May 25, 2023) and Month (May 2023) are fast approaching and we wanted to make sure you know about the programs we have for schools and school communities.

The STOP THE BLEED® Scholarship program is in its 5th year.  High school students are eligible to apply.  Winning students receive scholarship money and the schools they attend receive FREE STOP THE BLEED® equipment.  

The STOP THE BLEED® Grant program is designed to provide organizations (including schools) with STOP THE BLEED® training equipment.  

Find out about these and other programs included in the attachment or visit stopthebleedproject.org

The STOP THE BLEED® Club program is designed for high school and college student leaders to start or enhance an existing STOP THE BLEED® Program.  Students can apply online to start a club at their school here.

Please feel free to reach out to our team for more information about how to get involved and what you can do on STOP THE BLEED® Day.

Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program

Deadline: January 27, 2023

The Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant Program provides competitive grants to support and demonstrate innovative partnerships to train school-based mental health service providers for employment in schools and local educational agencies (LEAs).

Projects should support and demonstrate innovative partnerships to train school-based mental health service providers for employment in schools and local educational agencies (LEAs).

Review the grant and how to apply.

Ohio Based Grant Opportunities

Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation School Safety and Security Grants

The Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation (BWC) developed the School Safety and Security Grant Program to assist administrators of Ohio’s educational facilities with ensuring the safety of their staff and students when carryin out the instructional services they provide to children. The program is available to eligible Ohio employers that wish to purchase equipment that will substantially improve the safety and security of licensed educational facilities and reduce the potential for injuries.

Who is eligible?

The School Safety and Security Grant Program is available to Ohio employers that operate licensed preschool through grade 12 educational facilities, have had a BWC policy for at least two years and have remained in good standing with the BWC.

What will schools receive?

Eligible employers may receive up to $40,000 from the School Safety and Security Grant Program. It is a three-to-one matching program, which means BWC will pay $3 to every $1 the school spends toward the eligible equipment.

What can schools do with the money?

Schools may apply for:

• Safety interventions such as flooring/floor coatings for reducing slip hazards; lightweight lunch tables that reduce lifting and handling hazards; motorized bleacher systems to reduce manual pushing and pulling forces; safe food fryers; food cutting/slicing equipment; and floor cleaning machines.
• Incident response equipment such as equipment bags/backpacks stocked with trauma first-aid supplies; two-way communication devices and software designed to directly interface with emergency responder radio systems; and school wide panic alarm/panic button systems.
• Building/grounds/transportation security enhancements such as interior and exterior security doors and mechanisms (for example, panic bars or other fire code compliant door-locking mechanisms, bulletproof glass, bullet resistant coating materials for existing glass); protective vehicle crash barriers at entrances; modifications of building/facility entrances to restrict access; secured keycard systems; metal detectors (fixed or portable); security cameras; and emergency (police dispatch) call poles.

Who do I contact with questions?

Interested employers can visit the School Safety and Security Grant webpage to learn more about the program. Questions or inquiries can be submitted via the BWC Division of Safety & Hygiene’s Safety Intervention Grant email box.

Ohio Attorney General’s Office School Safety Training Grants

Ohio schools now can apply for a share of the $11 million available in safety grants that Attorney General Dave Yost will award for the 2022-2023 school year. This program is meant to give school leaders better flexibility to determine how best to improve student safety.

Who is eligible?

Public schools, charter schools, educational service centers, STEM schools and schools operated by county boards of developmental disabilities are eligible to receive either $2,500 or $5.50 per student, whichever amount is greater.

What can schools do with the money?

The funding can be used for school safety and security efforts including but not limited to:

1. The support of school resource officer certification training;
2. Any type of active shooter and school safety training or equipment;
3. All grade level type educational resources;
4. Training to identify and assist students with mental health issues;
5. School supplies or equipment related to school safety or for implementing the school’s safety plan;
6. Any other training related to school safety.

When can schools receive funds?

The Attorney General’s Office notified superintendents about eligibility and provided instructions for accessing the funds. All applications are due by March 31, 2023.

For more information on this grant and to apply please click here.

Who do I call if I have questions?

Please contact the Attorney General’s office at (614) 466-6963 or email SchoolSafetyGrants@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov.

Ohio Security Grant

House Bill 110 of the 134th General Assembly authorizes the Department of Public Safety and Ohio Emergency Management Agency to provide grant funding to nonprofit organizations, houses of worship, chartered nonpublic schools, and licensed preschools for eligible security improvements that assist the organization in preventing, preparing for, or responding to acts of terrorism.

Who is eligible?

As it relates to schools, chartered nonpublic schools and licensed preschools are eligible under this program.

What can schools do with the money?

Schools will need to apply for the grant, and as part of the application process, will go through a "vulnerability assessment" conducted by local law enforcement, military, or experienced security. This vulnerability assessment will identify any areas of improvement that schools can apply for security upgrades for.

For instance, if an assessment states a school needs more parking lot lights, the building will be more likely to be approved for funding if they ask for dollars to improve lighting versus if the school asked for funding for video cameras or other items.

Where can I go for more information?

Visit Ohio Emergency Management Agency’s webpage for more information https://ema.ohio.gov/PreparednessGrants_OSG.aspx

2022 Ohio K-12 School Safety Grant Program

In 2021 the K-12 School Safety Grant Program received a high volume of applications for its $5 million in grant funding for Ohio public schools.  While these grants have been awarded, the state has since authorized $100 million in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funding for additional school security grants under the new 2022 K-12 School Safety Grant Program. Some of these funds will be awarded to 2021 applicants, while the remainder will be for new applicants under the 2022 program.

Who is eligible?

$47 million is eligible for 2021 applicants (please visit the OFCC webpage for the list of eligible applicants)
$53 million is eligible for public and private schools.

Deadline to apply?

Monday, October 3, 2022 at 11:59 P.M.

What can schools do with the money?

Schools can purchase and update items found on the Authorized Equipment List (AEL) for the 2022 grant.  It is made up of Tier 1 items found on the Partner Alliance for Safer Schools checklist. Please note that this AEL is different from the 2021 list.

Where can I go for more information?

Visit the Ohio Facilities Construction Commission webpage for more information on how to apply.

How can I get a security and vulnerability assessment?

Please reach out to your local law enforcement agency to see if they offer this service first as they will be in the best position to offer recommendations for safety improvements since they will be responding to a school in the case of an emergency. If local law enforcement is not able to conduct this assessment, you are welcome to have experienced security conduct it using the specified grant template on the OFCC webpage. OSSC staff can do an assessment for you as well. To request this, please email OhioSchoolSafetyCenter@dps.ohio.gov.
 

Ohio Attorney General’s School/Law Enforcement Technology Linking Safety Grant

A limited number of grants, of up to $20,000 per school district, will be awarded for technology projects that link schools with law enforcement agencies/officers for improved safety, crime prevention, and response. The AG’s office estimates around 250 potential awards. Only one application per district will be evaluated and potentially awarded. Schools are eligible to apply to both this opportunity and the Ohio Attorney General’s FY23 School Safety Grant.

Who is eligible?

Public schools, charter schools, educational service centers, STEM schools and schools operated by county boards of developmental disabilities are eligible.

What can schools do with the money? 

The objective of this innovation grant is to encourage effective and successful collaboration between law enforcement and schools with the goal of improving safety and security. Projects should be designed to encourage a life-saving and crime prevention link through technology to law enforcement agencies and officers. Examples include technology for crisis response (e.g. immediate camera access during a shooting for law enforcement, silent panic alarms, shot detection technology, etc.) or technology designed to alert law enforcement of potential safety breeches on school property (e.g. license Plate Reader alerts for registered sex offender vehicles in proximity to an elementary school, protection order alerts, wanted dangerous person alerts, etc.)

When can schools receive funds?

The Attorney General’s Office notified superintendents about eligibility and provided instructions for accessing the funds. All applications are due by March 31, 2023.  For more information on this grant and to apply please click here.

Who do I call if I have questions? 

Please contact the Attorney General’s office at (614) 466-6963 or email SchoolSafetyGrants@OhioAttorneyGeneral.gov.