Grant Spotlight

Project Prevent Grant Program, with $6.8M for LEAs, Accepting Applications Through October 3

• By Kristal Kuykendall
• 09/12/22

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education is accepting applications through Oct. 3, 2022, for its Project Prevent Grant Program, which will award approximately $6.8 million to about a dozen local educational agencies impacted by community violence to “expand their capacity to implement community- and school-based strategies to help prevent community violence and mitigate the impacts of exposure to community violence.”

For the purposes of the program, “community violence” is defined as “intentional acts of interpersonal violence (e.g., firearm injuries, assaults, and homicides) committed in public areas by individuals outside the context of a familial or romantic relationship.”

The estimated range of awards is $250,000 to $800,000 per year for up to five years; between 10 and 13 applicants will initially be selected for funding, with more selected in the next year if funding allows, ED said.

The competitive grant has one Absolute Priority of addressing the impacts of community violence, according to ED’s application guide:

“Projects that implement community- and school-based strategies to help prevent community violence and mitigate the impacts of children and youth’s exposure to community violence in collaboration with local community-based organizations (e.g., local civic or community service organizations, local faith-based organizations, or local foundations or non-profit organizations),” OESE said on its grant website.

Two Competitive Priorities listed are “Established Partnership with a Local Community-Based Organization” and “Supporting Children and Youth from Low-Income Backgrounds.”

Projects will be funded for the first year with an option for four additional years contingent upon demonstration of substantial progress by the grantee and the availability of future funds, according to the applicant guide. The program does not require a matching contribution from the grantee, ED said.

Awards will be announced by December 30, 2022.

Applicants are required to submit applications through Grants.gov. For more information, LEAs may contact the competition manager, Nicole White, at [email protected] or (202) 453-6729.