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Safe Schools Endeavor Seeks Grant Proposals from
Jefferson, Lewis Schools for 2025-2026 Funding
Published: October 08, 2025
at 06:00 a.m.
By: Press Release from Northern New York Community
Foundation
Safe Schools Endeavor Seeks Grant Proposals from
Jefferson, Lewis Schools for 2025-2026 Funding
Deadline to Submit Proposals for Funding
Consideration is Friday, Nov. 7
 WATERTOWN — The Safe
Schools Endeavor, in partnership with the Northern New York Community
Foundation, encourages all schools in Jefferson and Lewis counties to apply
for 2025-2026 grant funding. Projects, programs, and initiatives that seek
to strengthen school safety and improve student and campus culture are
eligible for funding consideration.
School officials
and representatives should complete applications no later than Friday,
Nov. 7. All applications must be completed through the Community
Foundation’s online grant portal, which may be accessed at bit.ly/grant-portal. Grant awards
will be determined in December, and applicants will be notified with a
funding decision no later than early January.
Since 2018,
$129,116 in grant funding has been awarded to 16 school districts and
Jeff-Lewis BOCES to support 71 projects across the two counties. Public and
private schools are welcome to apply.
Grants are made
possible thanks to the generous gifts of many individuals, businesses, and
organizations in Jefferson and Lewis counties who support the Safe Schools
Endeavor and its mission to help keep all children safe while they are at
school.
“Keeping our
schools safe is something we can all help promote, and this partnership has
been valuable in providing additional resources toward that goal,” said Rande
S. Richardson, Community Foundation executive director. “We are
grateful that many continue to lead this effort with generous gifts from
the heart that have an immediate impact on our children.”
The Safe Schools
Endeavor will consider applications submitted by students, teachers,
faculty, staff, and parents. Any individual or group with an idea to
improve safety within their Jefferson or Lewis County school should discuss
the concept with their respective school administrator
to gather their support. Proposals that are student-led or involve close
collaboration with students may receive additional weight as funding is
considered.
“The work we do
together with support from donors is needed now as much as ever. When we
started this effort in 2018, we never envisioned that school tragedies
would continue at such a frequency. Our goal was to make a difference in
our community in the short-term while long-term solutions were developed at
a national level,” Safe Schools Endeavor Steering Committee Chair Erika
Flint said. “We sincerely appreciate the many local businesses,
organizations, and individuals who have consistently give so generously to
ensure these grants are possible. None of this would be possible without
the exceptional school personnel in Jefferson and Lewis County schools who
not only support SSE fundraising but continue to implement meaningful and
life-saving projects to ensure the safety of our children.”
Proposals can
include student or parent programming, equipment, faculty and staff
training, or anything else that an individual or group within the school
community believes would enhance the overall safety of the school and its
members.
The Safe Schools
Endeavor stresses awareness, empowerment, and action within school
communities, and grant proposals will be evaluated based upon the degree to
which they embody these desired outcomes. A scoring rubric is also
available for review at bit.ly/sserubric. Email
Mrs. Flint at eflint@fdrhpo.org ,
with any questions.
Individuals and
groups may request any amount, but typical grants will fall in the range of
$1,000 to $2,500. All projects or programs must begin or occur in the
2025-2026 school year with support from the respective school district. Funding for programs or projects that have
already occurred are not eligible as the Safe Schools Endeavor is not a
source for reimbursement of expenses.
To stay informed
about the Safe Schools Endeavor and its progress in our schools, like it on
Facebook at Facebook.com/SafeSchoolsEndeavor and
follow it in Instagram at Instagram.com/safeschoolsendeavor.
For the 2024-2025
school year, 16 projects were awarded grant funding in 14 school districts
totaling $28,290. Schools and projects receiving support were:
·
Beaver River Central School District, $2,500 to
continue installation of window glazing in all building entrances.
·
South Lewis Central School District, $2,090 to help
purchase 10 handheld radios to enhance emergency communication.
·
Alexandria Central School District, Lyme Central
School District, Jefferson-Lewis-Hamilton-Herkimer-Oneida BOCES, General
Brown Central School District, and South Jefferson Central School District, $2,000 each to
support the Emergency 911 Radio Project, which the Jefferson County
Emergency Management Office is leading.
·
Augustinian Academy, Carthage, $2,000 to help
address the social and emotional needs of an increasing number of students,
especially among military families with a series of two assemblies focused
on anti-bullying and building respect.
·
Adirondack Central School District, $1,900 to help
combat the negative effects of social media on children’s social skills and
mental wellness.
·
Watertown City School District, $1,500 to
launch “The Buddy Walk” project to improve the safety and well-being of
pre-k and kindergarten students by reducing instances of elopement and
ensuring secure transitions between locations.
·
Lowville Academy and Central School, $1,500 to help
address a growing mental health crisis among students. Funding will help
bring speakers to the school to present age-appropriate
content and promote healthy life choices.
·
South Jefferson Central School District, $1,500 to help
South Jefferson Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) enhance
school safety and foster a culture of respect, responsible decision-making,
and mental wellness.
·
Carthage Central School District, $1,500 to
support anti-bullying presentations for elementary and middle school
students.
·
Sackets Harbor Central School District, $1,500 to help
provide bullying prevention, suicide prevention, and education on digital
citizenship.
·
Watertown City School District, $1,300 to help
increase student awareness of human and sex trafficking through a
schoolwide assembly.
·
Copenhagen Central School District, $1,000 to help
purchase an AED for the elementary school wing.
About the Safe
Schools Endeavor
In the days that
followed the Feb. 14, 2018, shooting at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High
School in Parkland, Fla., that left 14 students and three staff members
dead, and 17 others wounded, a group of North Country residents were called
to act in their own communities in Jefferson and Lewis counties.
While school
safety leads many discussions across the country, the Safe Schools Endeavor
was created to
encourage change
at a very local level. Its founding members believe our children are our
most precious resource and should never worry for
their safety at school.
With generous
support from the Northern New York Community Foundation, a $20,000 matching
grant for all gifts made in support of the initiative was announced and a
focused effort to seek donations soon began. The movement struck a chord
with many Northern New Yorkers who quickly gave to the effort and met the
matching challenge, confirming a guiding philosophy that together “A Few
Can Make a Difference.”
A 15-member,
all-volunteer Steering Committee leads the Safe Schools Endeavor. Committee
members are parents, school officials, nonprofit executives, and retirees.
They include: Erika Flint, executive director, Fort Drum Regional
Health Planning Organization, and Safe Schools Endeavor Steering Committee
chairwoman; Jessica Bowline, president, Indigo Inkwell; Sarah
Colligan, chief human resources officer, Community Action Planning
Council of Jefferson County; Andrianna Crawford, counselor, Lowville
Academy and Central School; Brittney Fults, teacher, Carthage
Central; Brigitte Gillette, counselor, Copenhagen Central; Marjorie
LaVere, administrative assistant, Jefferson County Public Defender’s Office;
Todd Lighthall, executive director, Camp Oswegatchie, and Beaver
River Central School Board of Education member; Angela Matthews,
LCSW, behavioral health consultant, Guthrie Ambulatory Health Clinic, Fort
Drum; Rebecca Paté-Johnson, Head Start family advocate, Community
Action Planning Council of Jefferson County; Officer Shane Ryan,
Watertown City Schools school resource officer, Watertown City Police
Department; Kylie Simpson, probation officer, Lewis County Probation
Department; Stephen Todd, superintendent, Jeff-Lewis BOCES; Skyler
Tuttle, school safety officer, Lowville Academy and Central School; and
Talitha Workman, preschool teacher and advancement director,
Augustinian Academy.
About the
Northern New York Community Foundation
Since 1929, the
Northern New York Community Foundation has invested in improving and
enriching the quality of life for all in communities across Jefferson,
Lewis, and St. Lawrence counties.
Through
partnerships with businesses and organizations, charitable foundations, and generous families and individual
donors, the Community Foundation awards grants and scholarships from an
endowment and collection of funds that benefit the region. Its commitment
to donors helps individuals achieve their charitable objectives now and for
generations to come by preserving and honoring legacies of community
philanthropy while inspiring others.
The Community
Foundation is a resource for local charitable organizations, donors,
professional advisors and nonprofit organizations. It also works to bring
people together at its permanent home in the Northern New York Philanthropy
Center to discuss challenges our communities face and find creative
solutions that strengthen the region and make it a great place to live,
work, and play.
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