Matthew McConaughey and wife Camila Alves McConaughey have launched a new grant initiative to help prioritise children’s safety in schools across the country.
In a recent press release, Matthew and Camila’s Just Keep Livin Foundation announced the Greenlights Grant Initiative, which aims to “create safer school environments and ensure the well-being of children by helping school districts nationwide access billions of dollars of federal school safety funding”. The organisation noted that some of the funding was included in the 2022 Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which has implemented different school safety programs.
“The Greenlights Grant Initiative will create a platform to more easily connect school districts across the country to available federal funding, provide school districts with grant writing support, and make America’s schools and children safer,” the press release continued.
The pair’s non-profit organisation, which is focused on empowering high school students, will be working on the initiative with The School Superintendents Association, a leading association for school leaders.
In the press realse, Matthew and Camila shared a joint statement about the Bipartisan Safer Communities Act that was signed into law in June 2022, one month after the mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas.
“Just over one year ago, the tragedy at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde pushed Congress to pass historic legislation, The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act, which allocated billions of dollars aimed at assisting schools and school districts to create safer environments,” the couple, who’ve been married since 2012, said. “While the legislation is crucial in protecting America’s youth from violence, it remains far too difficult for school districts to apply for and receive federal school safety grants.”
They went on to describe the goal of their initiative, before sharing the request that parents from Uvalde had for the couple.
“Today’s launch of the Greenlights Grant Initiative is a meaningful step toward providing school districts across the country the grant writing support and the resources they need to keep kids safe in our schools,” they added. “The parents in Uvalde asked us to do one thing – to ‘make their lives matter.’ We hope the Greenlights Grant Initiative can help do just that.”
The Greenlights Grant Initiative will also consist of a “strategic advisory council,” with some of its co-chairs including Sen John Cornyn (R-TX), Sen Chris Murphy (D-CT), Sen Kyrsten Sinema (I-AZ), and Sen Thom Tillis (R-NC).
According to the press release, the council “will provide the Greenlights Grant Initiative with critical guidance and direction on how to maximise funding for school safety grants”. The council will also offer guidance to help “implement reforms to the grantmaking process that make accessing funds easier for applicants”.
McConaughey also shared a post on his Instagram about the initiative. The video proceeded to show the actor walking through the hallways of a school, before explaining that the Greenlights Initiative will “get the word out” about what the grants are, how much they offer, and how to apply. He also indicated that the initiative will offer “professional grant writing services” to school administrators at no cost.
“Today, Camila and I are launching the Greenlights Grant Initiative to simplify the federal grant application process for schools,” he wrote in the caption. “We want to help connect communities, students, and teachers with resources to support mental health programs and safer learning environments.”
Prior to announcing his grant initiative, Matthew, who is a Uvalde native, has been very vocal about keeping children in US schools safe. Weeks after the mass shooting, which left 19 students and two teachers killed, the actor gave an emotional speech in the White House briefing room.
During his speech, he held up artwork and photos of children slain by the 18-year-old gunman and described the severity of wounds inflicted by the AR-15-style rifle used in the shooting.
“They needed extensive restoration. Why? Due to the exceptionally large exit wounds, an AR 15 rifle,” he said, before calling on Congress to “lead with humility and acknowledge ... values that are above politics” by passing laws to make it harder for teenagers to obtain high-powered rifles.
“We need to raise the minimum age to purchase an AR 15 rifle to 21. We need a waiting period for those rifles. We need red flag laws and consequences for those who abuse them,” the How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days star said. “These are reasonable, practical, tactical regulations.”
Shortly after the shooting, the Just Keep Livin Foundation also launched the Uvalde Relief Fund. When announcing the relief fund, the organisation said Matthew and Camila had visited the elementary school and seen some of the “tragic loss” the community was experiencing.
