Paris Cooperative High School STOP School Violence Grant

Paris Union School District 95 (PU95), which serves 1,836 pre-K-12th grade students in Edgar County, IL, is requesting $279,645.59 in BJA STOP School Violence funds to deliver evidence-based anti-violence training programs—the Sandy Hook Promise Say Something program and Youth Mental Health First Aid (YMHFA)—to staff members, administrators, and students at Paris Cooperative High School. Project activities will fall under the focus area of training to prevent school violence, including training for school personnel and students. Deliverables will include the following.

Three high-level staff administrators at Paris Cooperative High School will receive advanced Youth Mental Health First Aid Train-the-Trainer instruction at an average of 40 hours of training per person during each year of the grant.

The three staff members who received Youth Mental Health First Aid training will coach, model, and train the other 60 Paris Cooperative High School staff members about mental health and substance abuse no later than the end of the program period (September 2025).

50 9th-12th grade students at Paris Cooperative High School will participate in at afterschool Sandy Hook Promise Say Something training sessions on an annual basis. After the three-year grant period, the training is expected to reach 150 students.

This program will result in the implementation of training and identification of age-appropriate resources that can be used to help students who are struggling with mental health crises. The program’s objective is to increase school safety using evidence-based solutions to prevent violence against schools, staff, and students and ensure a positive school climate.