Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training for Corrections | 22JD18

Opportunity Information: Apply for 22JD18

The Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training for Corrections grant opportunity is a U.S. Department of Justice, National Institute of Corrections (NIC) initiative designed to help jails and prisons respond more safely and effectively when incarcerated people experience mental health crises. The opportunity is rooted in a long-running shift that began with the closure of many state psychiatric hospitals in the 1970s, combined with limited community mental health resources. As a result, many individuals with serious mental illness have ended up in correctional settings rather than in treatment. The funding description highlights how common this problem is: researchers estimate serious mental illness affects about 15 percent of incarcerated men and 31 percent of incarcerated women, far above the general population. These conditions often go untreated and are associated with higher risks of suicide, victimization, violence, and unpredictable crisis events inside facilities.

At the center of the program is the CIT model, which originally emerged in Memphis, Tennessee in the late 1980s after a fatal incident involving a person with serious mental illness. The Memphis approach emphasized that crisis response works best when it is not handled by law enforcement alone, but instead uses a coordinated team strategy. That strategy intentionally brings together multiple stakeholders, such as corrections leadership and line staff, local mental health agencies, clinicians, family advocacy organizations, and other community partners. The goal is to create a shared, practical framework for responding to mental health crises in a way that improves safety while also increasing the likelihood that people receive appropriate behavioral health support.

The opportunity description contrasts CIT training with the response pattern that many facilities rely on when someone is in crisis: calling a specialized operations response team (often referred to as SORT or an equivalent unit) for rapid control and resolution. While quick response is recognized as essential to safety and security in a jail or prison environment, the description notes that if the situation escalates to force, there can be significant negative consequences, including injuries to incarcerated individuals, injuries to staff, and property damage. CIT training is positioned as a way to narrow the gap between an enforcement-driven response and a mental health-informed response by giving frontline correctional staff skills to de-escalate, communicate effectively, recognize signs and symptoms of behavioral health conditions, and make safer decisions under pressure. It also aims to help community partners better understand the operational realities and safety needs of detention and correctional staff, so that collaboration is more realistic and sustainable.

NIC formally introduced CIT training for correctional agencies in 2010. The CIT Training for Corrections program applies to both jails and prisons and focuses less on a one-time training event and more on building an agency's long-term capacity to run a sustainable, locally administered CIT Training for Corrections program. The description points to earlier national rollout efforts between December 2010 and March 2014, when NIC used a phased approach to spread the model across the country. During the initial phase, staff from nineteen jail systems, twenty state departments of correction, and one team from U.S. Probation and Pretrial Services were trained in core CIT concepts for corrections. Participants were organized into three-person teams that intentionally combined different perspectives, typically including a mental health advocate, an operations executive, and a behavioral health clinician. Those teams were then expected to return to their agencies and plan how to implement CIT training locally, reinforcing the program's emphasis on cross-discipline coordination and practical implementation rather than theory alone.

Administratively, this opportunity is listed as Funding Opportunity Number 22JD18 and is offered as a cooperative agreement, meaning the federal agency typically expects to have substantial involvement with the recipient during the period of performance (for example, through guidance, collaboration, or shared development of deliverables). It falls under CFDA 16.601 and is categorized as an "Other" type of funding activity and opportunity category, as stated in the source information. The award ceiling is $450,000, and NIC expected to make one award. The posting shows a creation date of June 28, 2022, with an original closing date of August 11, 2022. Eligibility is listed broadly as "Others" with further clarification referenced in the full eligibility text, suggesting that certain non-traditional applicants (often such as training/technical assistance providers, organizations with corrections expertise, or similar entities) may be considered depending on the detailed notice.

Overall, the grant is aimed at reducing harm and improving outcomes in correctional settings by strengthening the ability of staff and community partners to prevent crises from turning into violent encounters. It frames CIT training as a practical, evidence-informed bridge between traditional security responses and behavioral health first-response practices, with the longer-term objective of embedding a local CIT training program that can be maintained and delivered within the agency over time.

• The Department of Justice, National Institute of Corrections in the other (see text field entitled explanation of other category of funding activity for clarification) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Crisis Intervention Team (CIT) Training for Corrections" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.601.
• This funding opportunity was created on Jun 28, 2022.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Aug 11, 2022. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $450,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 1 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Others (see text field entitled Additional Information on Eligibility for clarification).

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