Grants
ALERRT’s programmatic and research work is supported by competitive grants from federal agencies, industry partners, and university programs. Below you’ll find current and past awards. For each entry we provide a brief synopsis and, where applicable, links to deliverables produced under the award.
Current Awards
Assessing the effectiveness of door locks in school-based active shooter events
Synopsis
School-based active shooter incidents, though rare, remain among the most consequential forms of targeted violence in the United States. Door locks and access-control measures are routinely cited in school-safety guidance, yet systematic evidence on how they function during real-world incidents has been limited. This study examines the role of door locks and related physical security features in K–12 active shooter events between 2000 and 2025, drawing on 54 completed events (66 doors), four averted incidents, and two in-depth case studies (Robb Elementary and Evergreen High School). The resulting report describes patterns in door status, breach modes, and offers eight evidence-based recommendations for school administrators, security professionals, and policymakers.
Deliverables
Final report — coming May 2026
ALERRT micro-learning video creation and evaluation
Synopsis
ALERRT’s Level 1 course is the foundation of the Center’s active-shooter response training, but as with most one-time training, the operational benefit can decay over time. This project develops 20 short-form “microlearning” videos drawn from the Level 1 curriculum, paired with discussion guides that allow shift leaders to facilitate brief reinforcement conversations during roll call. The aim is to “microdose” ALERRT training, embedding key concepts in routine shift-change briefings rather than relying solely on the initial multi-day course. To evaluate the approach, we are running a study with agencies that have never received ALERRT training, comparing knowledge retention and performance under standard delivery versus the same delivery followed by sustained microlearning exposure.
Deliverables
- 20 Level 1 microlearning videos
- Instructor discussion guides for shift-leader-led roll-call sessions
Preparing for Active Shooter Situations (PASS)
Synopsis
The PASS program — established under the 2016 Protecting Our Lives by Initiating COPS Expansion (POLICE) Act — funds a single national provider to deliver scenario-based, multi-disciplinary active-shooter response training at no cost to law enforcement, fire, and emergency medical services across the United States. ALERRT has held this award continuously since 2017, building on its 2013 designation by the FBI as the National Standard in Active Shooter Response Training. The 2025 award supports another year of nationwide course delivery, including the integrated, multi-disciplinary courses that prepare patrol officers, fire personnel, and EMS providers to coordinate during active-attack response. See Past Awards below for the program’s full funding history.
Deliverables
PASS is principally a training delivery program; however, peer-reviewed research conducted with PASS support is included among the entries on the Research Output page.
Past Awards
Preparing for Active Shooter Situations (PASS)
PASS has been continuously funded by the COPS Office since 2017, supporting nationwide active-shooter response training for law enforcement and other first responders. Cumulative funding across prior award years totals $72,208,987 (excludes the active 2025 award listed above).
The program is the COPS Office’s flagship vehicle for active-shooter response training, established under the 2016 POLICE Act. Each annual award funds a single national provider to deliver scenario-based, multi-disciplinary courses to law enforcement, fire, and EMS at no cost to the requesting agency. ALERRT has served as that provider every year since 2017, training more than 40,000 first responders per year through this program (annual counts vary somewhat year to year).
| Year | Amount | Award # |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | $10,400,000 | 15JCOPS-22-GK-01690-PASS |
| 2023 | $10,958,667 | 15JCOPS-22-GK-01690-PASS |
| 2022 | $9,790,000 | — |
| 2021 | $9,790,000 | 15JCOPS-21-GK-02120-SPAS |
| 2020 | $8,494,893 | 2020ASWXK001 |
| 2019 | $8,674,999 | 2019ASWXK001 |
| 2018 | $8,707,899 | 2018ASWXK001 |
| 2017 | $5,392,529 | 2017ASWXK001 |
PI: Pete Blair · Co-PIs: John Curnutt, Hunter Martaindale (all years)
Deliverables
PASS is principally a training delivery program (see scope figures above). Peer-reviewed research conducted with PASS support is catalogued among the entries on the Research Output page. Because PASS has funded the Center continuously since 2017 and publications often follow funding by several years, individual papers are not attributed to specific award cycles.
Integrated ICS training for all first responders
Synopsis
After-action reports from recent active-attack incidents repeatedly underscore the importance of an effective Incident Command System (ICS). This project produced an eLearning course — the Active Attack Incident Management (AAIM) course — designed to enhance first responders’ skills and performance in using the NIMS ICS process during active attacks and other major critical incidents. The course covers command phases, zones of operation, command elements and terminology, interagency coordination and communication, transfers of command, Incident Command Posts, Area Command, and EOC operations. Developed with subject-matter-expert input and grounded in NIMS ICS principles and real-event research, the course awards 4 hours of ALERRT training credit upon completion.
Deliverables
Self-paced eLearning course available on the ALERRT eLearning platform.
Fire as a Weapon (FAAW) In-Person and eLearning Training Opportunities
Synopsis
Fire as a Weapon (FAAW) refers to the use of fire, smoke, or flammable materials in conjunction with other attack vectors — a tactic that confounds incident response and demands an integrated, multi-disciplinary response for stabilization. FAAW has been deployed in incidents ranging from Waco, TX (1993) and Mumbai, India (2008) to Ferguson, MO (2014–15) and Honolulu, HI (2020), as well as in many smaller events, and both the magnitude and frequency of these incidents continue to evolve. In partnership with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), this project produced an eLearning program that trains fire and law enforcement personnel to recognize and respond to FAAW events.
Deliverables
Self-paced eLearning course available on the ALERRT eLearning platform.
Understanding the leakage that precedes mass public shootings and its utility for prevention efforts through public awareness
Synopsis
Although mass public shootings are statistically rare, they have been increasing in frequency and continue to affect communities across the United States. Research consistently finds that perpetrators broadcast their intentions in advance through dangerous communications — commonly referred to as “leakage” — yet these warning behaviors frequently go unreported. Led by the Rockefeller Institute of Government with subawards to Texas State University and the University of Massachusetts Lowell, this project develops and deploys public-awareness training that teaches K–12 students and staff, college audiences, and the general public how to recognize leakage and other pre-attack warning behaviors and how to report them through appropriate channels. Training content is grounded in an empirical analysis of leakage patterns identified across completed mass public shootings between 1999 and 2023.
Deliverables
Web-based public-awareness training programs designed to teach audiences how to identify leakage and other pre-attack warning behaviors and how to report them. Audiences include K–12 students and staff, higher-education communities, and the general public.
Adapting Commercial VR-Based Training to Support AFSOC Mission Sustainment Team Protection & Security Training Objectives
Synopsis
Air Force Special Operations Command (AFSOC) Mission Sustainment Team (MST) airmen perform protection and security duties across an unusually wide range of environments — from airfield asset protection to interior spaces such as classrooms, residence halls, and cafeterias — that are difficult to replicate with conventional in-person scenario training. This Phase 1 STTR award supported a feasibility study examining how virtual-reality (VR) training, paired with adaptive-training concepts, could expand the breadth of environments AFSOC MST trainees experience while reducing trainer burden during scenario delivery. Working with the Street Smarts VR (SSVR) platform, the project produced a white paper describing how performance-based measurement, AI-driven classification, and adaptive logic could be layered onto existing VR scenarios to tailor difficulty and feedback to individual trainee performance.
Deliverables
Phase 1 white paper outlining an adaptive-training implementation plan for the SSVR platform. A Phase 2 proposal was subsequently submitted but not awarded.
Firearm Detection Data
Synopsis
NEC Corporation contracted with the ALERRT Center to use ALERRT’s range facilities to test a firearm-detection platform under development by NEC. ALERRT’s role was limited to providing range space and operational support for NEC’s testing activities; the project did not produce ALERRT-authored deliverables.