Community Grant Program
Purpose:
The San Diego County District Attorney's Office is dedicated to building safe neighborhoods in partnership with the communities we serve. The DA’s Community Grant Program (CGP) seeks to engage San Diego County community-based organizations to identify and implement new and innovative methods to address community safety and expand community assets – such as hope and resilience regardless of zip code.
Grant funding up to $50,000 will be provided to participating organizations for a maximum of twelve (12) months to grow promising community-based solutions that produce positive results in the following focus areas:
- Youth and Family Support – Initiatives addressing the safety of youth and families and conditions or situations that could adversely affect education performance, behavioral health, physical safety, pro-social behavior and engagement. Proposals should demonstrate strategies for harm reduction, crime prevention or mitigation through access to support and services that foster the overall well-being of youth and families.
- Environmental Justice – Projects addressing environmental challenges in communities that may adversely impact safe, clean and healthy neighborhoods. Projects should foster access to healthy surroundings and conditions such as healthy food, absence of trash and other pollution, enhanced safety measures, and other positive and proactive strategies improving availability and access to environmental safeguards that increase the well-being of the community.
- Protecting Vulnerable Youth – Youth targeted by adults for involvement in illicit drug use, sale, and trafficking and youth targeted for human trafficking is increasing and widespread, cutting across all demographic sectors, particularly age, race/ethnicity, geographic region, and population categories. Dangers and risks faced by youth go beyond the risk of physical, and psychological harm and expose youth to serious illegal activities and criminality. Youth are vulnerable to harassment and exploitation by adults using false promises, manipulation, romantic relationships and money to lure them into dangerous situations, thereby compromising their future. Proposals should address strategies that protect youth from predatory harm and empower them to choose alternatives to involvement in these dangerous activities.
- Victim Support – Addressing the needs of primary and secondary victims of crime is core to the mission of the District Attorney’s Office. The District Attorney’s Office has a long history of collaborating with the community to meet the needs of survivors of crime with the goal of providing programs that are effective, improve outcomes for victims, and lead to a reduction in crime. Requests for victim services are increasing due to changing populations, varying needs and increasingly complex systems that challenge victims and service providers. Proposals should address innovative and dynamic strategies to identify, assess and provide services to crime victims that are driven by the needs, strengths and voices of those victims.
These focus areas were determined in collaboration with stakeholders and community partners, and are supported by trends in regional crime data. The District Attorney’s Office is also eager and excited to partner with small organizations embedded in communities who may not have had access to grant opportunities previously but are poised to propose innovative and dynamic approaches to addressing the above CGP areas of focus. The District Attorney’s Office is committed to ensuring CGP providers reflect the diverse makeup of the communities we serve.
Funding Requirements:
Applicants may request up to a maximum of $50,000 to be utilized for up to a twelve (12) month period. Organizations must justify the amount of funds requested and ensure the requested funding is reasonable and plausible for the proposed use of funds. Organizations are encouraged to request funding reasonably needed for the proposed use of funds
Grant funds awarded will be one-time funds intended to provide an opportunity to pilot promising community-based solutions that demonstrate positive results and merit sustainable funding. Programs that intend to utilize funding as part of a long-term program or project are encouraged to consider a sustainability plan for funding program beyond the grant period.
Grant funding is intended to implement new programs/projects, or to expand existing programs with new and innovative methods to address community safety in the specified areas of focus. Funds are not intended to supplant or replace existing funding and future funding is based on funding availability and not assured.
Please note that grant agreements will require participating organizations to incorporate evidence-based practices where applicable and will also include periodic reporting of program outcomes.
Applicant Eligibility:
- Organizations with a Business License or Non-Profit Organizations, minimum of one (1) year in operations.
- Possess all valid industry and/or licenses or permits, insurance necessary for services proposed.