Mentoring for Youth Affected by Opioid and Other Substance Use
Office of Justice Programs response
center:
800.851.3420
OJP.ResponseCenter@usdoj.gov
Grants.gov contact center:
800.518.4726
support@grants.gov
Self-service knowledge base
System for award management (SAM):
866.606.8220
Federal service desk
JustGrants:
833.872.5175
JustGrants.Support@usdoj.gov
This program provides funding to support local, regional, or statewide efforts to provide mentoring services to youth ages 17 and under and their family members impacted by opioids and other substance use. Mentoring services may include one-on-one, group, or peer mentoring, or a combination of these approaches.
Funding will support:
- Mentoring services to youth who are 17 years old or younger at the time of admission to the program. Mentors must be adults ages 18 or older; in cases where peer mentoring models are implemented, older peers may act as mentors under the supervision of an adult
- Services targeting both impacted youth and their families
- Training for mentors to recognize the signs and symptoms of substance use among individuals at risk of opioid and other substance use
- Up to 20% of the total project funds for other non-mentoring direct services, such as mental health treatment, substance use treatment, or other supportive services identified and aligned with the project design
Grants will be awarded in 2 categories:
- Category 1: Local Project Sites - Focuses on providing mentoring services as part of a prevention, treatment, and supportive approach for those youth impacted by substance use
- Category 2: Statewide and Regional - Supports a broad-based approach to building mentoring program capacity in targeted regions throughout the country to help youth impacted by substance use
Rural communities and federally recognized tribes are target populations.
Eligible Category 1 applicants include organizations that have been in existence for at least 3 years at the time of application, and have been directly delivering a structured mentoring program model. Eligible organization types include:
- City, county, township, and federally recognized Native American tribal governments
- Units of local government
- Independent school districts
- Public, state-controlled, and private institutions of higher education
- Nonprofit organizations with and without 501(c)(3) status with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS)
Eligible Category 2 applicants include Category 1 applicants above and:
- National organizations
- Organizations having statewide reach that provide mentoring services
Category 1 and Category 2 applicants are required to establish a formal relationship with a public or private substance use treatment agency.
Award ceiling:
- Category 1: $650,000
- Category 2: $2,000,000
Estimated number of awards:
- Category 1: 10
- Category 2: 5
Project period: Up to 36 months
Estimated total program funding:
$16,500,000
Links to the full announcement, application instructions, and the online application process are available through grants.gov.
Applicants should submit an SF-424 and an SF-LLL in grants.gov by November 16, 2026.
Submit the full application, including attachments, in the JustGrants grants management system by November 23, 2026.
Related Content
Organizations (2)
- U.S. Department of Justice, view details
- Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention, view details
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