SAMHSA Project AWARE – State Education Agency Grants

• The State Education Agency (SEA), as defined by Section 9010(41) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act; or
• Education Agencies/Authorities serving children and youth residing in federally recognized American Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) tribes, tribal organizations, and consortia of tribes or tribal organizations.

Eligibility is limited to SEAs or Education Agencies/Authorities serving AI/AN children and youth because SAMHSA believes that only they are in the unique position to leverage schools as anchor institutions to build strong partnerships that support the wide-scale adoption of AWARE-SEA services, programs, and policies. SEAs or Education Agencies/Authorities have the capacity and knowledge to assist LEAs with implementing the necessary policies, programs, and services at the community level while sharing and implementing statewide successful strategies. Through the building of interconnected state and community-level partnerships, AWARE-SEA can promote systems integration and policy change. This program will also strengthen the ability of states and communities to develop plans to integrate educational and community-based promotion, prevention, and treatment programs for school-aged youth and their families.

For Education Agencies/Authorities serving AI/AN children and youth, tribal organization means the recognized governing body of any Indian tribe; or any legally established organization of Indians which is controlled, sanctioned, or chartered by such governing body, or which is democratically elected by the adult members of the Indian community to be served by such organization and which includes the maximum participation of Indians in all phases of its activities. Consortia of tribes or tribal organizations are eligible to apply, but each participating entity must indicate its approval. A single tribe in the consortium must be the legal applicant, the recipient of the award, and the entity legally responsible for satisfying the grant requirements.

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) is accepting applications for fiscal year (FY) 2019 Project AWARE (Advancing Wellness and Resilience in Education) – State Education Agency (SEA) grants (Short Title: AWARE-SEA).  The purpose of this program is to build or expand the capacity of State Educational Agencies, in partnership with State Mental Health Agencies (SMHAs) overseeing school-aged youth and local education agencies (LEAS), to: (1) increase awareness of mental health issues among school-aged youth; (2) provide training for school personnel and other adults who interact with school-aged youth to detect and respond to mental health issues; and (3) connect school-aged youth, who may have behavioral health issues (including serious emotional disturbance [SED] or serious mental illness [SMI]), and their families to needed services.  SAMHSA expects that this program will focus on partnerships and collaboration between state and local systems to promote the healthy development of school-aged youth and prevent youth violence.

The AWARE-SEA program supports the development and implementation of a comprehensive plan of activities, services, and strategies to decrease youth violence and support the healthy development of school-aged youth. This program builds upon the successful strategies of the Safe Schools/Healthy Students (SS/HS) Initiative that have been effective in creating safe and secure schools and promoting the mental health of students in communities across the country.  These strategies include facilitating a closer relationship between state and local implementation of policies and programs, and supporting the development of integrated systems that create safe and respectful environments for learning and promote the mental health of school-aged youth.