FY25 School Violence Prevention Program

The Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) is the component of the U.S. Department of Justice responsible for advancing the practice of community policing by the nation’s state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies through information and grant resources. To date, the COPS Office has been appropriated more than $21 billion to advance community policing, including grants awarded to more than 13,000 state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement agencies to fund the hiring and redeployment of nearly 140,000 officers. COPS Office information resources, covering a wide range of community policing topics such as school and campus safety, violent crime, and officer safety and wellness, can be downloaded via the COPS Office’s home page, https://cops.usdoj.gov. The FY25 School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) provides funding directly to states, units of local government, Indian tribes, and their public agencies to improve security at schools and on school grounds in the recipient’s jurisdiction through evidence-based school safety programs. The COPS Office anticipates that up to $73,000,000 will be available for up to $500,000 per award, with approximately 200 awards anticipated. A local cost share (matching funds) of at least 25 percent in the form of cash is required unless a match waiver is requested and approved, and the period of performance duration will be 36 months, with a period of performance start date of 10/1/25. Approximately $1 million of the available funding will be reserved for microgrants for school districts, including rural, tribal, and low-resourced schools. Applications for microgrants must not exceed $100,000, and the COPS Office will waive the 25 percent local cost share (matching funds) requirement for microgrant applicants that are selected for funding. Consideration for microgrant funding does not exclude your agency from consideration from non-microgrant SVPP funding. Applications should demonstrate a comprehensive approach to school safety and activities must fall within one of the statutory purpose areas (see 34 U.S.C. § 10551(b)(5)–(9)): • Coordination with local law enforcement; • Training for local law enforcement officers to prevent student violence against others and self; • Placement and use of metal detectors, locks, lighting, and other deterrent measures; • Acquisition and installation of technology for expedited notification of local law enforcement during an emergency; • Any other measure that, in the determination of the COPS Office Director, may provide a significant improvement in security.