Tacoma committee recommends $828,855 in BRAVE intervention grants, holds funds pending federal JAG allocation

Community Vitality and Safety Committee Chair Rambach on Aug. 14 heard Neighborhood and Community Services staff present funding recommendations from the selection advisory committee (SAC) for RFP NC25-0083F, the Building Resilience Against Youth Violence and Exploitation (BRAVE) solicitation.

The SAC recommended allocating $828,855 for intervention‑focused BRAVE contracts, part of a citywide BRAVE portfolio that currently has nearly $2.1 million committed from prior awards; with the newly recommended awards and prior commitments the total BRAVE budget across two RFPs is just over $2.9 million. Staff said the $828,855 figure reflects available local funds and that an additional roughly $170,000 initially expected from the federal Justice Assistance Grant (JAG) is not yet accessible.

Why this matters: NCS said the 2024 RFP round produced mostly prevention programs, leaving a funding gap for intensive, individualized interventions for young people who are already court‑involved or at highest risk. The current recommendations aim to fund intervention services to address that gap, with services scheduled to begin no earlier than Sept. 1, 2025.

Neighborhood and Community Services Program Manager Sarah Richard and senior community resource analyst Erin Watlington told the committee the BRAVE restructure combined education, youth development and youth violence reduction into a single continuum intended to use prevention, intervention and suppression strategies to reduce youth involvement in violent crime. Watlington said the SAC evaluated 21 responsive applications out of 32 total applicants and that the SAC was composed of seven reviewers with expertise in violence prevention and intervention, including two Human Services commissioners, a community member with intervention experience, a systems partner, a Tacoma Police Department officer and two NCS staff (NCS staff did not make funding recommendations).

The SAC recommended funding eight programs. The highest‑rated applicants and recommended amounts were:

• Big Homie Ministries: $160,625 (100% of requested amount; score 90)

• Consejo Counseling and Referral Services: $145,000 (100% of request; score 89.14)

• Tacoma Boatbuilders: $134,012 (recommended at 80% of request)

• James Matthew Commission Foundation: $84,160 (recommended at 80% of request)

• Communities in Schools of Tacoma: $113,768 (recommended at 80% of request)

• Metropolitan Development Council (in partnership with 211): $80,000 (recommended at 40% of request)

• Alchemy Skate Park Education Center: $31,716 (100% of request; NCS minimum award noted)

• Innovative Changemakers (Young Kings Boys Group): $79,574 (recommended at 40% of request)

Staff explained the SAC chose to fund the top‑rated programs closer to their requests rather than spreading limited funds more thinly across many programs; evaluation scores and alignment with the RFP’s intervention requirements informed where money was recommended. Thirteen applications were not recommended for funding; staff cited score alignment and, for some applicants, insufficient detail about specific services or named provider partnerships as reasons. Pierce County Juvenile Court submitted a large request (about $345,000) and, according to staff, did not list specific service providers in its application, which made alignment and practical funding difficult.

Richard told the committee the RFP opened May 7 and closed June 3, 2025. Services are anticipated to begin Sept. 1, 2025, pending the conclusion of a purchasing protest period and subsequent contract negotiations. "Purchasing will send out notifications to the applicants next week," Richard said, and applicants then have a limited protest period; following resolution of any protests, NCS will negotiate contracts.

Committee members and staff discussed how additional federal JAG dollars or guidance from an executive steering committee could be used to expand funding later. Vice Chair Scott and other committee members encouraged reconvening an executive steering committee to guide future decisions, define outcome measures and ensure the BRAVE continuum reaches court‑involved youth and those reentering the community. Scott described plans to reconvene the steering committee with community and agency partners, aiming for an initial meeting in September and quarterly meetings thereafter.

The presentation closed with committee members asking staff to provide a clearer table that indicates which applicants currently receive city funding from other sources, so the council can see the broader funding footprint across city programs. Richard and Watlington agreed to provide that information as part of follow‑up materials.

No formal council or committee vote was taken on the recommendations during the meeting; the SAC’s recommendations will proceed to purchasing notifications and the statutory protest period before contract execution.

The BRAVE funding recommendations and the SAC’s scoring were the primary substantive item on the committee agenda.