Apply now for federal school safety grants

WASHINGTON, D.C. - U.S. Rep. Mike Bost (IL-12) today announced that applications for up to $500,000 in federal school safety grants would be accepted through April 8, 2020 at 6:59 p.m. CDT.

The COPS School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) grants were created through Bost's bipartisan legislation, the Securing Our Schools Act, which was signed into law in March 2018.

Last year, 103 school districts and police departments were awarded grants last year, including five in Illinois - three of which were in the 12th Congressional District.

"Every parent and grandparent's worst nightmare is the phone call or news report informing us that our children's lives are at risk because of an incident that happened at their school," said Bost. "No child should be more concerned about their safety at school than they are about their science project, chorus concert, or basketball game. This grant program provides funds for schools to purchase lifesaving technology to deter threats and to immediately contact first responders when incidents take place. I was proud to introduce the legislation that created this grant program and invite Southern Illinois school districts to apply for this critical funding that will help keep our kids and communities safe."

SVPP is a competitive award program designed to provide funding to improve security at schools and on school grounds in the grantees' jurisdictions through evidence-based school safety programs. $50 million is available through this year's COPS SVPP.

The program provides the funding directly to states, units of local government, and Indian tribes.