Governor DeWine Announces School Safety Grant Program Accepting Applications

(COLUMBUS, Ohio)—Ohio Governor Mike DeWine announced today that the State is now accepting applications for $53 million in grant funding for schools as part of his $100 million Ohio K-12 School Safety Grant Program.

The Ohio Facilities Construction Commission (OFCC), in partnership with the Ohio School Safety Center, is encouraging more than 4,000 eligible public schools, districts, and chartered non-public schools statewide to apply for the grant opportunity. Applicants can request up to $100,000 per school building to cover expenses associated with physical security enhancements, such as security cameras, public address systems, automatic door locks, visitor badging systems, and exterior lighting.

“A safe school plays a crucial role in improving the physical and mental health of students and staff, alike,” said Governor DeWine. “These grants help create safe learning environments, so students have the opportunity to succeed in the classroom.”

Governor DeWine first launched the K-12 School Safety Grant Program in 2021, with an appropriation of $5 million, which was awarded to 95 schools in 27 counties. Due to the high volume of applicants, not all schools who applied received funding.  This year, the Governor and legislature partnered to increase the grant program by an additional $100 million with support from the American Rescue Plan Act. Earlier this month, Governor DeWine announced that $47 million is being distributed to 1,183 schools across 83 counties that originally applied for but did not receive funding in the 2021 program.

Governor DeWine created the Ohio School Safety Center in 2019. It is housed at the Ohio Department of Public Safety and works to assist local schools, colleges and universities, and law enforcement agencies to prevent, prepare for, and respond to threats and acts of violence, including self-harm, through a holistic, solutions-based approach to improving school safety.