Grants and Other Financial Assistance Programs: FY2008

The purpose of this state-funded competitive grant program is to assist school districts with the development and establishment of:

1. comprehensive programs to promote school safety and help prevent violence in schools from whatever causes; and/or

2. in-school programs and services to address, within the general education school program, the educational and psycho-social needs of students whose behavior interferes with learning, particularly those who are suffering from the traumatic effects of exposure to violence. (Students suffering from the traumatic effects of exposure to violence shall include, but not be limited to, those exposed to maltreatment, family or community violence, war, homelessness, or any combination thereof.)

Priority will be given to programs that:

1. are based on empirically validated interventions (i.e., science/research-based with proven effectiveness);

2. educate students to the same academic standards and curriculum frameworks as taught to all students; and

3. support the development of the following program components:

   1. creating a school environment where students can focus, behave appropriately, and feel safe, and where problems can be prevented through the comprehensive use of schoolwide, classroom based, small group, and/or individual interventions in creating a safe and positive school climate;

   2. collaborating that includes (but is not limited to) the following potential collaborators: broadly recognized experts in the fields of child trauma and family and community violence; community mental health centers and hospitals; battered women shelters; and local district homeless liaisons;

   3. providing ongoing information-sharing and professional development opportunities and support for teachers, administrators, and other school personnel so that they can: understand and identify the symptoms of trauma; be aware of effective techniques of managing behaviors and promoting learning in children displaying symptoms seen commonly in those who have been victims of or witnesses to violence; and develop the skills and resources to identify and intervene with at-risk students;

   4. evaluating school policy and existing school and community programs and services to determine whether and to what extent students suspected and/or identified as suffering from trauma can receive effective supports and interventions that can help such students to succeed in their public school programs and, where necessary, be referred quickly and in confidence to appropriate services;

   5. reviewing of school policies that may exacerbate inadvertently school-related difficulties for traumatized children and/or further traumatize students who have been victimized by child maltreatment, or who have witnessed violence in the home or community;

   6. creating structures/protocols that support teachers, school staff, parents/guardians, and families as they address the needs of children and youth who have been victimized by violence or who have witnessed violence in the home and/or community;

   7. helping students play a key role in keeping the school safe;

   8. equipping students and teachers with the skills needed to avoid conflict and violence; and

   9. helping schools and individuals to further connect with the community and share resources.

Public school districts, including charter schools, that meet the following criteria are eligible to apply:

1. a significant number of students whose learning and/or classroom behavior is impacted by the traumatic effects of exposure to violence; and/or

2. documented high levels of school-based violent incidents.

Subject to budget appropriation, meeting grant requirements, and submission of required documents, Fund Code: 791 grants will be awarded on a five-year cycle with continuation grant award amounts being reduced by 20 percent each year.

• Year One (competitive RFP) single-district applicants may apply for a grant up to $25,000.

• Year One (competitive RFP) inter-district collaborative applications may apply for a maximum of $15,000 per district and must identify the lead district that will be administering the award.

The number of grants awarded in FY2008 will be subject to final appropriation for this program activity. The Department reserves the right to alter the award to each funded school district.

Email: jcaldwell@doe.mass.edu

Phone: (781) 338-6839

Friday, July 6, 2007

Competitive proposals must be received at the Department by 5:00 p.m. on the date due - no exceptions.

Submit three (3) sets, each with an original signature of the Superintendent/ Executive Director. Mail to:

Jenny Caldwell
Student and Secondary Support
Massachusetts Department of
Elementary and Secondary Education
350 Main Street
Malden, MA 02148-5023