Schools should be safe havens for learning. Students, teachers, staff, and the community shouldn’t have to worry about their children’s safety in school.
Sadly, this isn’t our current reality. Violent threats have gone up by 158% in schools, and 18% of all school shootings in the United States have happened since the Sandy Hook tragedy in 2012.
This is unacceptable—and that’s why the government provides organizations with school violence prevention funds in the form of much-needed grants.
The Department of Justice is releasing grants via the School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) and Community Policing Development (CPD) program. These programs offer significant funding for K-12 schools, awarding up to $500,000 with award periods ranging from one to three years.
Learn about the SVPP and CPD grants, as well as how your organization can apply for these funds to keep our schools safer.
What is the STOP Act?
The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS) was established in 1994. COPS works with communities across the United States to fight crime by offering resources and funding.
The Students, Teachers, and Officers Preventing School Violence (STOP) Act of 2018 gave COPS the power to award grants to schools for violence prevention. The goal of the legislation is to improve school security using evidence-based safety programs that reduce violence across the nation.
The Justice Department has provisioned over $125 million for the STOP Program, which provides training and evidence-based assessments to stop violence in primary and secondary schools. Under the STOP Act, organizations can apply for SVPP or CPD grants, depending on their specific needs.
What is the School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) Grant?
The School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) gives funding to public and private K-12 schools. This is a three-year award that provides up to $500,000 per recipient, although it can only cover 75% of the funding needed.
Organizations can use SVPP funding for:
- Physical safety measures like metal detectors, locks, alarms, lighting, SMS notification systems, and data-driven school violence prevention technology
- Law enforcement notification technology
- Law enforcement coordination and training
- Supplies needed to run the SVPP program, like laptops, paper, ink, maintenance, and salaries
All technology must comply with local and national standards for school safety, as well as local building safety codes.
Several types of organizations can apply for SVPP funding, including:
- States
- Local government
- Native American tribes
- School districts
- Towns
- Individual K-12 schools (public or private)
- Police departments
- Health departments
- Mental health service providers
- Nonprofits
To qualify for the SVPP grant, your organization must perform a complete safety assessment during the three-year award period. The SVPP grant also requires your organization to match 25% of the costs for this program.
SVPP applications will be released over the next month or so, and organizations will have a 60-day window to apply. COPS will announce the awards at the end of this year.
To apply for the SVPP grant:
- Visit the JustGrants portal to complete an initial application.
- Submit your proposal with a program outline and documentation. You must share your existing school safety initiatives, how you plan to use the money, and the impact this program will have on your organization.
- The Justice Department will score applications based on impact, improved security need, federal assistance need, and location. Organizations with high rates of violence receive priority.
Make sure that your organization follows the DOJ application checklist so your application is processed as efficiently as possible.
What is Community Policing Development (CPD) Micro-grants?
Unlike the SVPP, the Community Policing Development (CDP) loan program is just for law enforcement agencies. The goal of this program is to give law enforcement more capacity to prevent school violence with innovative approaches to fighting crime.
In 2021, the CPD program dispensed $3 million in funding. Local law enforcement agencies, state law enforcement agencies, and Native American tribes can apply for CPD grants for school violence prevention.
To qualify for funding, your organization will need to show CPD a demonstration of your pilot project. It needs to solve a problem in one of these areas to qualify:
- Community Trust and Legitimacy
- Officer Engagement
- Youth Engagement
- Hate Crimes and Domestic Terrorism
- Community Violence Intervention
Ready to apply? Visit the CPD application on Grants.gov to get started. After your initial application, Grants.gov will email you with more instructions on the second part of the application, which goes through JustGrants. Applications close on May 17, 2022.
Making schools safer—together
School safety is a community problem. We can make schools a safe haven once again using technology and relying on evidence-based strategies to eliminate school violence. Thanks to the STOP Act, COPS has the authority to dispense hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants via the SVPP and CPD.
Implementing these grants requires an experienced technology partner. Dice Communications helps organizations make the most of their grant funding to make the world a safer place. See how our technology solutions are protecting the public.
