Matthew McConaughey and wife Camila announce initiative to help make schools safer

The just keep livin Foundation, established by actor Matthew McConaughey and his wife, Camila, has announced a new initiative to help school districts across the United States improve school safety.

The Greenlights Grant Initiative was launched "with one simple goal: to help more school districts across the country gain access to federal funds to help make their students safer, healthier, and happier," the McConaugheys said on the organization's website.

A native of Ulvade, Texas, McConaughey and his wife visited after a gunman killed 19 children at a Texas elementary school in May 2022 in the deadliest shooting at a U.S. grade school since the 2012 attack at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Connecticut.

'Tragic and senseless': 19 children killed in Texas elementary school shooting; gunman dead

“Schools should be a sanctuary where our kids learn in an environment without fear. Our goal is to help every school district in the country access the resources available to them to keep their students safe. The parents in Uvalde asked us to do one thing, “make their lives matter.” We hope this can help do just that.” – Camila and Matthew McConaughey

What is the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act?

In the days after the shooting in Uvalde, the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act became law. Passed in June 2022, the law makes various changes to federal firearms laws, including expanding background check requirements, broadening the scope of existing restrictions, and establishing new criminal offenses.

The act also reauthorizes, funds, and supports various programs, grants, and activities to promote access to behavioral and mental health services, enhance school safety and security initiatives, and address gun violence in communities.

"This bill made common-sense reforms to keep firearms out of the hands of dangerous people, and also allocated billions of dollars to help school districts make their schools safer," the McConaugheys said.

"Much of these resources were allocated in the form of competitive grants, meaning school districts have to proactively apply for these federal programs to get funding for improving school security systems, implementing new safety training programs, or hiring mental health professionals."

What is the goal of the Greenlights Grant Initiative?

The goal of the Greenlights Grant Initiative is to support school districts in applying for grants.

"After speaking with Congressman Tony Gonzales, who represents Uvalde, we learned that many school district leaders in Texas were unaware of federal school safety grants made available by this legislation, or had tremendous difficulty accessing them.

"Applying for federal grants is incredibly complex and hiring a grant writer, which can cost up to $50,000 to write one federal grant, is unobtainable for so many school districts, especially some of those most in need for that support.

"Our goal is to demystify this process, get the word out to more school districts that these grants are available, help them secure this funding, and make securing these grants easier moving forward."

Why should a school district seek help?

Applying for, and winning, federal grants is complex, expensive, and intimidating. There are dozens of school safety grants, offered by different federal agencies at different times throughout the year.

Completing a federal grant can take up to 100 hours and cost as much as $50,000 to hire a professional grant writer. School districts with limited resources and staff, often rural school districts or those in less affluent areas, are at a severe disadvantage in securing federal funding.

The Greenlights Grant Initiative is focused on raising awareness about school safety grants, equipping school districts with resources and tools for successful applications, and ensuring continuous and more equitable federal funding for school safety.

So how does the Greenlights Grant Initiative help school districts?

"The Greenlights Grant Initiative offers a short-term philanthropic intervention to help school districts get the support they need now.

"Greenlights Grant Initiative provides tailored and free resources to assist nationwide school districts access school safety grants. Our tools include webinars, guidebooks, how-to’s, and tutorials. By providing information and support, the Greenlights Grant Initiative aims to enhance a school district’s ability to successfully apply for and receive federal grants so schools have the resources they need to keep students safe," according to the organization's website.

"Our long-term goal is to reform the grantmaking system to ensure that securing federal grant funding is not so difficult."

What school districts can receive help through the Greenlights Grant Initiative?

Any local education agency in the country that is eligible to apply for federal school safety grants can participate in the Greenlights Grant Initiative.

Every school district is eligible to receive grant alerts, tutorials, webinars, grant writing guidance, and other tools to help them apply for school safety grants.

The Greenlights Grant Initiative will also provide fully funded grant-writing consulting services to select high-need, low-capacity school districts.

What school districts would qualify for grant-writing services?

In partnership with education funding experts, the Greenlights Grant Initiative will identify select high-need, low-capacity districts to receive fully funded grant writing services. These school districts will be selected based on a variety of factors, including:

• High poverty rates.

• Student-to-mental health professional ratio.

• Whether a district has applied for or received a federal grant in the past.

• School districts in which students have recently experienced a natural disaster or traumatic event.

• Geographic diversity.

What is considered a school safety grant?

"We consider any grant that is designed to identify school security threats, improve collaboration and coordination between law enforcement and schools, connect students with mental health programs and personnel, and promote positive school culture and climate to be a school safety grant."

The Greenlights Grant Initiative focuses on the grants included in the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act.

What grants will Greenlights help school districts apply for?

There are several potential grants that can be applied for, targeting areas related to school violence prevention, mental health services, and academic enrichment.

Available school safety grants come from various sources, including the Department of Justice, the Department of Health and Human Services, and the Department of Education. All available grants are listed on the “Grant Search” page on the website.

How do you apply to participate in the Greenlights Grant Initiative?

The first step is to fill out the basic information as either a school administrator, teacher, parent, grant writer or partner.

What happens after a school district applies for help?

Greenlights Grant Initiative will review the applications and determine what level of support can be offered to the school district.

"We know the need for federal grant support is enormous, and we are committed to doing as much as we can to support your district in pursuant of federal school safety funding with the finite resources we have."

What about charter schools? Are they eligible for federal grants?

Yes, charter schools that are LEAs or are part of LEAs are eligible for federal school safety funding.

This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: Matthew McConaughey, Camila start Greenlights Grant Initiative