School Safety Funding
Tennessee has committed over $230 million to school safety since the 2023 Covenant School shooting. Millions in federal grant dollars open each spring — and HomicideZero is built to help your district use them.
Most programs require a school district or local government to be the applicant. HomicideZero partners with you as the service provider — we do the work, you get the funding.
$230M+
Allocated by TN legislature post-Covenant
~$40M
Currently unused due to SRO staffing gaps
$73M
Available federally via SVPP annually
Available Funding Programs
13 active programs — federal and state — that Tennessee schools can use to fund threat assessment, mental health services, and violence prevention infrastructure.
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Title IV-A — Student Support and Academic Enrichment (SSAE)
Formula-based federal funding every TN district receives annually. Eligible uses include behavioral threat assessment, violence prevention, school mental health staffing, and safe-and-healthy-students programming. Widely underutilized for safety despite being the most flexible federal stream available.
Eligible applicants: All LEAs (formula allocation via state ed agency). No competitive application required.
Most districts overlook that Title IV-A explicitly allows threat assessment teams and violence prevention. If your district isn't using your SSAE allocation for safety, you're leaving guaranteed money on the table.
Tennessee School Safety Grant
State-level grant for physical security, SRO placement, emergency planning, violence prevention programs, conflict resolution, and staff training. No local match required.
Eligible applicants: Tennessee LEAs, public charter schools, non-public schools, and church-related schools. No match requirement.
Tennessee-specific funding with no match requirement. Violence prevention programs and staff training are explicit allowable uses — a clear pathway for HomicideZero through school district partnerships.
TN School-Based Behavioral Health Liaison Program
Places licensed behavioral health liaisons in schools to provide prevention, early intervention, and counseling. Currently funds 274+ liaisons statewide. Districts request placement through TDMHSAS-contracted community providers.
Eligible applicants: Tennessee LEAs and schools. Coordinated via TDMHSAS community mental health partners.
Liaisons in your buildings are the front line of identifying at-risk students. Pairs naturally with HomicideZero's clinical risk assessment workflow.
TN Risk Management Trust — Safety Grants
TNRMT distributes ~36 safety improvement grants per year to member school boards. Funds physical security upgrades, training, and risk-reduction programs. Membership covers ~80% of TN school boards.
Eligible applicants: TN school boards that are TNRMT members. Quick eligibility check: ask your business office whether you're in the pool.
Most TN districts don't realize their insurance pool funds safety improvements. Low-friction money if you're a member.
Tennessee School Safety Alert Grant
Funds mobile panic alert system purchases for Tennessee schools. First-come, first-served basis with a limit of two grants per grand division (East, Middle, West Tennessee).
Eligible applicants: Tennessee LEAs, public charter schools, non-public schools, and church-related schools.
Technology-focused grant. Pairs well with HomicideZero's platform as part of a comprehensive school safety stack.
TN Statewide School Resource Officer Grant
Funds SRO salaries to place an officer in every TN school. Applications are submitted by partnering law enforcement agencies; districts coordinate the request.
Eligible applicants: Law enforcement agencies in partnership with Tennessee LEAs. Districts initiate the partnership.
SROs are the on-site response arm. HomicideZero's threat assessment workflow gives SROs and counselors a shared playbook for at-risk students.
Builds sustainable school mental health infrastructure. Trains staff to identify and respond to youth mental health concerns, funds threat assessment teams, screening, and crisis response. State applies; LEAs are the operational recipients.
Eligible applicants: State educational/health agencies as primary applicants; LEAs as subgrantees and service sites.
Project AWARE explicitly funds threat assessment teams and youth mental health training — the exact stack HomicideZero deploys.
BSCA Stronger Connections Grant
State-administered funding for mental health expansion, physical security, and threat assessment in high-need LEAs. Nearly $1B nationally with funds available through September 2026.
Eligible applicants: LEAs designated as high-need, awarded by state ed agency.
Stronger Connections funds threat assessment infrastructure outright. Pair with HomicideZero deployment for an end-to-end use case.
School-Based Mental Health Services Grant
Increases the number of credentialed mental health service providers in schools, expands mental health capacity, and funds evidence-based programs for identifying and supporting at-risk students.
Eligible applicants: State and local educational agencies (LEAs), consortia of LEAs. Service providers and tools can be funded through an LEA applicant.
HomicideZero's risk assessment platform directly expands school mental health capacity — ideal fit when partnering with an LEA applicant.
Mental Health Service Professional Demonstration Grant
Funds school psychologist and mental health professional pipelines in high-need LEAs (districts with 500+ students per school psychologist). $90M total program with 18–24 awards at ~$1M each.
Eligible applicants: High-need LEAs in partnership with institutions of higher education.
Builds the clinical workforce that operates threat assessment programs. HomicideZero is the platform layer for the staff this grant funds.
OJJDP Enhancing School Capacity to Address Youth Violence
Funds evidence-based violence prevention and intervention programs in K-12 settings, including threat assessment infrastructure, early identification of at-risk youth, and coordinated community response.
Eligible applicants: K-12 schools, local educational agencies, nonprofits with demonstrated school partnerships.
Core mission alignment — OJJDP focuses on exactly the early identification and intervention model that HomicideZero delivers.
STOP School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP)
Funds evidence-based school safety programs including behavioral threat assessment teams, anonymous reporting tools, school security technology, and violence prevention training.
Eligible applicants: States, units of local government, Indian tribes. Schools and nonprofits participate as subcontractors or service providers to a lead government applicant.
SVPP explicitly funds 'behavioral threat assessment teams' — directly aligned with HomicideZero's clinical risk assessment platform.
School Emergency Response to Violence (SERV)
Provides short-term support to schools and LEAs to help them recover from traumatic events and restore a safe learning environment. Can fund mental health services, counseling, and safety planning.
Eligible applicants: Local educational agencies and higher education institutions affected by a violent or traumatic event.
Post-incident fit — HomicideZero's assessment tools support the recovery and ongoing risk management work SERV funds.
How the Partnership Model Works
Most federal school safety grants require a school district or local government to apply. HomicideZero partners with your district as a named service provider — your district wins the grant, HomicideZero delivers the platform, training, and clinical support.
Your District Applies
The LEA or local government submits the grant application naming HomicideZero as the service provider. We help you write the relevant sections.
Grant Is Awarded
Funds flow to the district. HomicideZero is contracted as the vendor to deliver threat assessment tools, training, and clinical protocols.
We Deliver
Platform deployment, staff training, and ongoing clinical support. Your district gets a defensible, evidence-based safety program. HomicideZero gets paid from grant funds.
Spring 2026 Deadlines Are Coming
Several federal programs close this spring. If your district wants to apply, now is the time to start the conversation. We can help scope the application and get your district ready.