Secretary DeVos Announces $1 Million Initial Recovery Grant to Santa Fe Independent School District

Washington, D.C. — U.S. Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos today announced that the Department’s Office of Safe and Healthy Students (OSHS) has awarded Santa Fe Independent School District a Project School Emergency Response to Violence (SERV) grant totaling $1 million. The grant will help with recovery efforts following the tragic shootings at Santa Fe High School in Texas, on May 18, 2018.

“No student, parent or educator should have to experience the trauma suffered by so many at Santa Fe High School and other schools throughout the country,” said Secretary DeVos. This initial SERV grant will help to provide essential services that will aid in the healing and recovery process. Every day, the work of the Federal Commission on School Safety grows more urgent. We continue to focus on identifying proven ways to prevent violence and keep our students safe at school.

The Department’s Project SERV grants provide critical funding for school districts, colleges and universities that have experienced significant traumatic events and need resources to respond, recover and re-establish safe environments for students. There are two types of Project SERV awards—Immediate Services and Extended Services. Immediate Services grants provide emergency, short-term assistance to affected school districts or colleges and universities. Extended Services grants assist school districts and colleges and universities in carrying out the long-term recovery efforts that may be needed following a significant, traumatic event. Santa Fe Independent School District received an Immediate Services grant.

Secretary DeVos and Department officials are in frequent contact with state and local education leaders in Texas as they assess their needs in the wake of this tragedy.

Featured

  • Houston K–12 District Opens New Elementary School

    The Lamar Consolidated Independent School District (Lamar CISD) recently announced the completion of a new elementary school in a western suburb of Houston, Texas, according to a news release. Haygood Elementary School measures in at 110,000 square feet, has the capacity for 854 students, and is the first of three new schools scheduled to be built in the Cross Creek West community.

  • Massachusetts K–12 District Selects Architect for New Junior High

    Swansea Public Schools in Swansea, Mass., recently announced that it has selected Finegold Alexander Architects to design a new junior high school for the district, according to a news release. The firm will create the Feasibility Study and Schematic Design for Joseph Case Junior High School after a lengthy selection process by the Massachusetts School Building Authority (MSBA).

  • California K–12 District Completes Elementary School Campus Replacement

    The West Contra Costa Unified School District (WCCUSD) in Richmond, Calif., recently announced the completion of a replacement campus for Lake Elementary School, according to a news release. The school has capacity for 470 students between Transitional Kindergarten (TK) and sixth grade.

  • Utah Valley University Opens New Engineering Building

    Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah, recently held a grand-opening ceremony for the new Scott M. Smith Engineering Building, according to a news release. The facility is one of the largest engineering buildings in the state at almost 200,000 square feet, and it plays home to the university’s Smith College of Engineering and Technology (SCET).