Grants / Department of Justice / National Institute of Justice

NIJ FY 2026 Research and Evaluation on School Safety

Open Closes November 23, 2026 (23 days left) Opportunity O-NIJ-2026-172796

• Award ceiling$5.0 million
• Award floornot stated
• Expected awards6
• Total funding$5.0 million
• Cost sharingNot required
• Funding typeCooperative Agreement

Key dates

Add the deadline to your calendar

Who can apply

This opportunity is open to nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses and businesses.

• State governments
• County governments
• City or township governments
• Special district governments
• Independent school districts
• Public and State controlled institutions of higher education
• Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized)
• Public housing authorities/Indian housing authorities
• Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments)
• Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education
• Private institutions of higher education
• For profit organizations other than small businesses
• Small businesses

More grants for nonprofits, colleges and universities, state and local governments, tribes, small businesses, businesses.

Is this a realistic fit?

• No cost sharing or match is required.

What the grant funds

This is a notice of funding opportunity (NOFO) for NIJ FY 2026 Research and Evaluation on School Safety. This opportunity will support rigorous research and evaluation projects to fill key gaps regarding K-12 safety, specifically focusing on the development, deployment, and operation of: • Anonymous reporting systems for threats of school violence, including mobile telephone applications, hotlines, and internet websites • School threat assessment and intervention teams that include coordination with law enforcement agencies and school personnel This NOFO seeks rigorous outcome/impact evaluations paired with process/implementation evaluations to assess the effectiveness of activities supported by STOP1 School Violence Act (SVA) projects administered by the Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA) and the Office of Community Oriented Policing Services (COPS Office) School Violence Prevention Program (SVPP) or similar programs from other sources that align with STOP SVA's goals. To develop practical recommendations for K-12 school safety, applicants are strongly encouraged to work closely with educators, school stakeholders, and communities to develop questions, identify solutions, collect data, and interpret findings. Applicants should: • Clearly describe complex factors and how they will be measured. • Include letters of support confirming secondary data access and explain how datasets will be matched to support the analyses proposed. • Describe data limitations, how they will be addressed, and their potential impact on findings.

Category: Science and Technology and other Research and Development.

How to apply

1. Read the full notice and attachments on Grants.gov and the agency's announcement. The notice is the official source for deadlines and requirements.
2. Make sure your organization has an active SAM.gov registration and Unique Entity ID; registration can take several weeks.
3. Register on Grants.gov and submit through Workspace before the deadline and time given in the notice. Our application guide walks through each step.

Questions go to National Institute of Justice, OJP.ResponseCenter@usdoj.gov, 202-616-5314.

Open the official notice