Grant News

The Department of Justice Edward Byrne Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) was released on Friday, June 30th.

The JAG program is the primary grant funding provider for an array of initiatives across the criminal justice spectrum. Areas supported include law enforcement, courts and corrections, drug treatment and enforcement, victim and witness support, and technology improvement programs.

Esports are hugely popular; current projections show that there will soon be 30 million monthly esports viewers. The National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) currently lists nearly 200 colleges and universities with varsity esports programs, and many more schools have club teams or curricular esports programs. K-12 organizations are increasingly getting involved with esports as well. 

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act introduced many new grant programs when passed in late 2021. These initiatives ranged from broadband and electric charging to major clean energy and water infrastructure. A handful of these funding projects are classified as smart city adjacent, but one specific program, Strengthening Mobility and Revolutionizing Transportation, or SMART, is the definition of a smart city grant.

The past few years have presented several challenges for K-12 school districts across the country. Many districts reported lower test scores, mental health challenges, attendance issues, and technological shortcomings because of the disruption to learning caused by COVID-19. These challenges present complex issues that demand careful attention, but many teachers appropriately feel the school day is just too short, and school leaders find it difficult to parse out one issue from another and address them accordingly.

State grants for higher education are an important source of funding for colleges and universities to provide financial assistance to students pursuing post-secondary education. In addition to grants for students, state grant programs may also provide institutions with funding to support programs, initiatives, and research. In this article, we will explore the state grants available for higher education institutions to apply for.

Institutes of higher education have a wide variety of grant programs available to support efforts on campus. Many different federal, state, and foundation funding sources focus either specifically on higher education or fund higher education projects as part of their larger grant funding priorities. Broadly speaking, this funding for higher education predominantly falls within three categories: student learning outcomes, workforce development, and faculty research. These major types of funding programs have remained relatively consistent over the last few decades. However, within these categories, specific funding priorities tend to shift due to political and cultural priorities. Read on for a deep dive into five of the current major funding trends in higher education.

Have you been searching high and low for funding for your latest program or project? What about looking into foundation grants! With over 76,000 foundations in the United States and an estimated $47 billion given away each year, the money you need may be right under your nose.

Investments in federal grants have increased considerably over the past several years, particularly with the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA) and the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Knowing how to navigate the current grant funding landscape can be a challenge, and understanding how grant funds are awarded can help organizations when they decide to apply for grant funding. There are four main types of grant funding at the federal level: competitive grants, pass-through grants, formula grants, and continuation grants.

ELIGIBILITY: The program is open to application from all institutions of higher education and associated organizations.

ELIGIBILITY: Eligible lead applicants are Nonprofit Organizations, Labor Unions, Labor-Management Organizations, and Worker Organizations, Education/Training Provider(s), Workforce Development Entities, Economic Development Agencies, and Native American Tribal Governments.

ELIGIBILITY: Awards are made to State Education Agencies (SEAs). Local education agencies (LEAs) and nonprofit organizations may apply to states for subgrants.

ELIGIBILITY: Eligible applicants are: (A) A State; (B) a political subdivision of a State; (C) a Tribal government; (D) a public transit agency or authority; (E) a public toll authority; (F) a metropolitan planning organization; and (G) a group of 2 or more eligible entities described.

Applying for grants to support infrastructure development and innovative solutions to meet the needs of communities can be a challenging process with strict requirements and intense competition. To improve your chances of success, you must create an outstanding application that showcases your proposal's strengths while adhering to the application guidelines. The following tips provide valuable insight into preparing an effective grant application that stands out.

Eligible applicants are:

• political subdivisions of the State;
• commercial broadband service providers;
• non-commercial broadband service providers; and
• partnerships between political subdivisions, commercial broadband service providers, noncommercial broadband service providers or any combination thereof that are also not otherwise considered disqualified from participation in the program.

Cybercrimes against local governments, public safety agencies, and schools are becoming more frequent and destructive. As a result, these attacks can lead to monetary loss and the theft of critical data. Criminals are targeting large cities, county governments, and even small towns in rural areas of the country. In response to the increase in these attacks, the Federal government is encouraging local leaders to take action by utilizing federal and state grant funds to prepare for and prevent ransomware attacks and hackers.

The Preservation and Reinvestment Initiative for Community Enhancement (PRICE) PRICE has a goal to preserve and revitalize manufactured housing. Administered by the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), these funds will be disbursed as competitive grants to various entities with grantees having to provide at least a 50 percent match.

The two primary federal funding agencies for public safety initiatives are the Department of Justice and the Department of Homeland Security. A review of the FY 2023 Federal Budget provides a glimpse into what these agencies will prioritize in the coming year.

With the passing of the Fiscal Year 2023 budget, the US Department of Education was allocated approximately 83.5 billion: an increase of $3.4 billion from FY22. Similarly, to FY22, Congress opted to allocate additional monies to many well-known programs housed under the Department of Education, instead of creating new funding programs.

School-aged children and gaming have become ubiquitous; casual and competitive gaming is a part of nearly every school-aged child’s daily activity. According to Pew Internet and American Life Project, about 99% of boys and 94% of girls play digital games about 7-10 hours per week.[1] These figures are not a surprise for anyone that regularly interacts with children and educators have long-ago incorporated games within their classrooms. Many schools across the country have set up after-school gaming clubs, integrated games like Minecraft or Roblox into their STEM coursework, or have developed Esports teams that compete in interscholastic leagues. At a time when student engagement and enrollment are down, many educational institutions are turning to game-based learning (GBL) to re-connect with students and equip them with the skills needed to tackle 21^st century challenges.

[1] Homer, Kinzer, and Plass, “Foundations of Game Based Learning,” 258.

Access to the internet is critical for so many daily activities (such as reading this article, for instance). The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, recognizes the importance of broadband for Americans and provides significant funding to implement solutions. Through the Internet for All initiative, this funding is being distributed to states, territories, and other eligible recipients through various grant programs. Even before IIJA, federal agencies such as the Departments of Commerce and Agriculture were and continue to fund broadband grant programs. States have also started to make their own contributions to broadband efforts. Now is a great time to be pursuing grant funding for your broadband projects.

Approximately 12.3 million students across the US are enrolled in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs. CTE programs vary by institution, but the overarching purpose is to provide students with the academic and technical skills needed to succeed in an emerging career field. The Department of Education established a list of 16 career fields, referred to as career clusters, representing up to 79 different career pathways. These different pathways allow students to explore a career cluster of interest while also learning employability skills that complement their academic studies. CTE evolved from vocational education, which focused on an isolated elective with specific job training associated, to be more academically rigorous and integrated within other programs of study in comprehensive high schools, technical centers, and community colleges. Read on for a description of the common elements that make CTE programs successful, a high level overview of the funding landscape, and to learn how CTE programs function within different institutional settings.

ELIGIBILITY: Eligible applicants include:

• Incorporated organizations
• Federally recognized Tribes
• State and local units of government
• Any other legal entity, including cooperatives, private corporations, or limited liability companies organized on a for-profit or not-for-profit basis.

ELIGIBILITY: The eligible lead applicant must be a community college that is a public institution of higher education as defined in Section 101(a) of the Higher Education Act and whose most common degree awarded is an associate degree.

ELIGIBILITY: Eligible applicants are federally recognized Indian Tribes (or a consortium of Indian Tribes).