The U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS) awarded 35 grants, totaling $18 million, under the Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention (TVTP) Grant Program for fiscal year 2024 (FY24). Awardees include public health organizations, colleges and universities, and groups working with underserved communities.

The program is administered by the DHS Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It provides financial assistance to eligible applicants across the country to develop targeted violence and terrorism prevention programming in their communities, pilot innovative prevention approaches, and identify prevention best practices that can be replicated in communities nationwide.

“In our current dynamic threat environment, any town, anywhere can be a target,” said Secretary of Homeland Security Alejandro N. Mayorkas. “The Department of Homeland Security’s Targeted Violence and Terrorism Prevention grant awards announced today will help local communities pilot, strengthen, and share evidence-based prevention strategies, significantly expanding our nation’s counterterrorism capacity and making all of us safer.”

FY24 Awardees

Leveraging a public-health-informed approach, CP3 brings together behavioral and mental health providers, educators, faith leaders, social service providers, nonprofits, law enforcement, and other state, local, and community partners to address systemic factors that can lead to violence while strengthening protective factors at the local level that support the safety, well-being, and resiliency of communities in the U.S. This focus has also led to an increase in public health organizations applying for the TVTP grant program. In FY24, 35 public health entities applied and 7 were selected, compared to 3 applicants and 2 awardees in FY23. Public health organizations receiving an award include:

• Boston Children’s Hospital
• Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Division of Mental Health and Addiction
• Oakland Community Health Network
• Parents for Peace
• Rhode Island Department of Health
• Safe States Alliance
• University of Nebraska Medical Center
• Weber-Morgan Health Department
• Wood County Alcohol, Drug Addiction, and Mental Service Board

Given widespread concern regarding youth involvement in targeted violence nationally, CP3 selected 20 grantees focused wholly or in part on prevention in youth settings, including grants to improve clinical practice with at-risk youth (Boston Children’s Hospital) and upskilling behavioral threat assessment and management tools for at-risk youth (Safe States Alliance). Awardees include:

• Auburn University
• Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education
• Boston Children’s Hospital
• Dillard University
• Elizabeth City State University
• Green River Educational Cooperative
• Independent Production Fund
• Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Division of Mental Health and Addiction
• Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh
• North Carolina State University
• Rhode Island Department of Health
• Safe States Alliance
• School Administrative Unit #18
• Southern University
• Southern Illinois University
• The Research Foundation for the State University of New York on behalf of the Rockefeller Institute of Government
• The Research Foundation for the State University of New York on behalf of the University at Buffalo
• Trustees of Indiana University
• University of Southern Maine
• Weber-Morgan Health Department

DHS prioritizes targeted violence and terrorism prevention in underserved communities and has continued its outreach to these areas in recent award cycles, including FY24. This year, the TVTP program received 39 applications from, or proposing to do work with, underserved communities. CP3 awarded 8 grants that provide services to underserved populations, including one tribal government, three Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs), one LGBTQ+ serving institution, one organization serving religious minorities, and two organizations serving rural communities. Awardees include:

• Centerlink
• Dillard University
• Elizabeth City State University
• Green River Educational Cooperative
• Indiana Family and Social Services Administration, Division of Mental Health and Addiction
• Jewish Federation of Greater Pittsburgh
• Otoe-Missouria Tribe
• Southern University

Since launching in 2020, the TVTP program has awarded nearly $90 million via 178 awards to organizations working to prevent violence in 41 states plus the District of Columbia. The next round of TVTP grant funding will be announced in spring 2025. More information on the program is available here.

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