BJA FY 19 STOP School Violence Prevention and Mental Health Training Program | BJA 2019 15117

Opportunity Information: Apply for BJA 2019 15117

The BJA FY 19 STOP School Violence Prevention and Mental Health Training Program is a discretionary federal grant opportunity administered by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), under CFDA 16.839. It was created in response to the STOP School Violence Act of 2018, which authorized BJA to run a grant program aimed at helping communities prevent and reduce violence in K-12 school settings. The overall focus is practical prevention and readiness: improving the capacity of schools and their partners to identify threats early, respond appropriately, and create safer learning environments without relying solely on reactive measures.

The program is built around three main categories of supported activities. First, it funds training for school personnel and educational efforts for students designed to prevent student violence. This can include structured training and prevention programming intended to improve awareness of warning signs, promote safe reporting and intervention practices, and strengthen day-to-day safety culture in schools. Second, it supports the development and operation of anonymous reporting systems for threats of school violence. The solicitation specifically mentions tools such as mobile phone applications, hotlines, and websites, reflecting an emphasis on making it easier for students, staff, and community members to share concerns quickly and confidentially. Third, the program supports the development and operation of school threat assessment and crisis intervention teams, including efforts that involve coordination between schools and law enforcement. In practice, this category is about building multidisciplinary processes and teams that can evaluate threats, manage cases, and coordinate responses before situations escalate, while also improving crisis response planning when immediate action is necessary.

In addition to those three core areas, the program allows funding for specialized training for school officials on intervening with and responding to individuals whose mental health issues may affect school safety. This mental health training component is meant to strengthen frontline capabilities for de-escalation, appropriate referrals, and coordinated responses that balance safety with supportive intervention. While the notice does not prescribe a single model, the intent is clearly to help school staff and partnering agencies handle concerning behavior more effectively, especially when mental health needs are part of the risk picture.

Eligible applicants include a broad set of governmental entities: state governments, county governments, city or township governments, special district governments, and federally recognized Native American tribal governments. The listing also notes that other applicants may be eligible depending on additional eligibility clarifications in the full announcement. The grant uses the standard "Grant" funding instrument type, and it is categorized under several activity areas, including disaster prevention and relief and education, reflecting its public safety and prevention orientation.

Key administrative details in the source information include an opportunity number of BJA-2019-15117, a posting (creation) date of April 17, 2019, and an original application closing date of June 18, 2019. The maximum award amount listed is $1,000,000 per award (award ceiling), and BJA anticipated making 48 awards. Taken together, those figures indicate a competitive national program designed to fund a significant number of jurisdictions while still supporting projects large enough to build or expand reporting systems, training programs, and coordinated threat assessment capabilities.

Overall, this opportunity is meant for jurisdictions that want to move beyond informal safety efforts and instead build structured prevention and intervention systems: training that equips staff and students, anonymous reporting channels that capture tips early, and threat assessment and crisis intervention teams that can coordinate with law enforcement and school leadership. The mental health training allowance further signals that BJA intended these projects to address school safety in a way that recognizes behavioral health as part of prevention and appropriate response, not just as a secondary consideration.

• The Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance in the disaster prevention and relief, education, employment, labor and training, humanities (see cultural affairs in cfda) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "BJA FY 19 STOP School Violence Prevention and Mental Health Training Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.839.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 17, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 18, 2019. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 48 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

Apply for BJA 2019 15117

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