BJA FY 19 Student Computer and Digital Forensics Educational Opportunities Program | BJA 2019 16290

Opportunity Information: Apply for BJA 2019 16290

The BJA FY 19 Student Computer and Digital Forensics Educational Opportunities Program (Funding Opportunity Number BJA 2019 16290) is a discretionary grant offered by the U.S. Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance (BJA), designed to expand and strengthen student training pipelines in computer forensics and digital evidence. The central idea of the program is to partner with an institution of higher education to create or enhance practical, career-oriented learning experiences that combine academic instruction with hands-on exposure to the kinds of tools, procedures, and real-world problems encountered in modern digital investigations. The goal is workforce development: preparing students to step into roles supporting the prevention, investigation, and response to economic crime, cybercrime, and other high-tech offenses across federal, state, local, territorial, and tribal law enforcement environments.

This opportunity supports education and training activities that sit at the intersection of law enforcement and technology, reflecting how much investigative work now depends on digital artifacts such as computer files, mobile device data, network logs, cloud accounts, and other electronically stored information. By emphasizing both “computer forensics” and “digital evidence,” the program signals an interest not only in technical extraction and analysis, but also in the broader evidence lifecycle, including documentation, integrity, and practices consistent with investigative and legal standards. In practice, funded programs would be expected to help students develop job-ready competencies relevant to digital forensic labs and investigative units, positioning graduates to contribute effectively in agencies tasked with high-tech crime response.

The award instrument is a grant, with an award ceiling of $1,000,000, and BJA anticipated making up to two awards under this solicitation. The program’s activity focus spans several categories, including education; employment, labor, and training; information and statistics; law, justice, and legal services; and science and technology research and development. The associated CFDA number is 16.752, which corresponds to Bureau of Justice Assistance funding. The solicitation was created on April 25, 2019, with an original closing date of June 25, 2019, indicating a roughly two-month application window typical for competitive discretionary federal grants.

Eligibility is broad and includes public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, federally recognized Native American tribal governments, nonprofit organizations with IRS 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions), for-profit organizations other than small businesses, and small businesses. Even with this wide eligibility, the program description makes clear that BJA’s intent is to establish a partnership with higher education to expand educational opportunities for students, so applicants would generally need to show credible capacity to deliver student-focused training, experiential learning, and curriculum development aligned with law enforcement digital forensics needs. Overall, the solicitation reflects BJA’s emphasis on building a stronger, better-prepared talent pipeline for digital evidence work, acknowledging that cyber and high-tech crime investigations increasingly require specialized technical education paired with practical, operational readiness.

• The Department of Justice, Bureau of Justice Assistance in the education, employment, labor and training, information and statistics, law, justice and legal services, science and technology and other research and development sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "BJA FY 19 Student Computer and Digital Forensics Educational Opportunities Program" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 16.752.
• This funding opportunity was created on Apr 25, 2019.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 25, 2019. (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 $1,000,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 2 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for BJA 2019 16290

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