Update (12/3/2025)

The documents, guidance and information on this website contain information related to the Public-School Districts Opioid Recovery Trust (“Trust”) first phase of grant making, which opened in June 2024 and culminated in awards to fifty-one approved grants to thirty-nine districts in June 2025.

We anticipate a second phase of grant funding to begin in March/April 2026, with selection of awards in Spring 2027. We await final court approvals of the settlement(s) that will provide the funds for this second phase. Please visit www.SacklerSchoolDistrictOpioidSettlement.com for more information or to see if your district is eligible to apply for the second phase of funds. We will notify districts and post new grant guidance and documents about the new second phase grant application process and grant timeline when those approvals and parameters are final.

If you are interested in receiving information about this new second phase, please email [email protected]. We will add you to our email list and make sure you are notified of any new developments and changes to the website as we move forward with the new phase.

First Phase Grant Awards Announcement

The Public School Districts’ Opioid Recovery Trust (PSDORT), announced more than $24 million in grants to 39 school districts nationwide. The awards—totaling 51 grants of up to $500,000 each—will fund programs to help schools address the devastating impact of the opioid crisis on students and their families.

PSDORT received more than 200 applications from school districts across 34 states and American Samoa. A distinguished panel of national experts evaluated proposals in a competitive selection process that concluded June 15, 2025. Dr. Alonso consulted with the Committee of District Representatives in the selection of the winning proposals. The selected projects represent a wide range of initiatives addressing urgent educational needs, including academic interventions, social-emotional learning, and strategies to close opportunity gaps.

Co-lead counsel in the underlying opioid litigation include Mehri & Skalet, Henrichsen Law Group, Terrell Hogan & Yegelwel, and Bailey Glasser.

For comprehensive information about the PSDORT Awards announcement, please refer to the PSDORT Award Press Release.

To learn more about the PSDORT Award Application and Selection process, please visit the Award Selection Documents or the Award Selection FAQs pages. For a list and description of the awards, please see Appendix E – PSDORT Award List, Appendix F – PSDORT Awards by State, and Appendix G – PSDORT Award Application Summaries.

Overview

The Public School Districts’ Opioid Recovery Trust (“the Trust”) aims to help public school districts recover from the opioid epidemic and develop responses to enhance educating students harmed by the opioid epidemic. By students harmed by the opioid epidemic we primarily mean students born with neonatal opioid withdrawal symptoms, many of whom require special education supports, but we also mean students who have suffered traumatic family loss and educational interruptions because of the opioid epidemic.

Funding from the trust will go where it will have the greatest help, whether classroom services, school-based behavioral and mental health supports, instructional innovations, or other district and school-based supports that directly affect students harmed by the opioid epidemic.

The grants will be awarded to independent public school districts who demonstrate a clear need for opioid recovery and support services and a plan to integrate these services into their existing support frameworks. The grants cannot supplant funding for legally mandated or existing services. The Trust will consider grant applications from districts applying in partnerships with external civic and community partners or with partner districts but in all cases grant funds will be awarded directly to the districts.

Types of Grants

Districts were able to apply for funding for up to three types of grants, each with a maximum grant value of $500,000, which had to be drawn down and used over a period of three fiscal years following the distribution of the grant. For more information about the types of grants, please refer to the Request for Proposal (RFP) and the Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).

Grant Type

Description

District Improvement Grants

(maximum grant value of $500,000)

Intended to help districts of all sizes respond to system-wide challenges triggered by the opioid epidemic. In applying for these grants, districts should consider how they coordinate and align their resources with complementary resources in their wider communities in support of services for students harmed by the opioid crisis. These grants might include efforts to improve:

• The identification of these students in need, as well as the processes and structures that channel these students into available services, especially special education services,
• The types of school programs and modifications available for these students given their needs,
• The capacity of adults in districts to support these students,
• The tools with which districts assess the progress of these students and respond accordingly to their needs, and
• The bridges between the district and its schools, and among the district and surrounding civic and community resources to maximize opportunities for these students and augment the capacity of the district to serve them.

We encourage districts to partner with external agencies and organizations in applying for this type of grant. We also encourage small and/or rural districts to partner with each other to leverage resources and achieve economies of scale.

Model Programs and Best Practices Grants

(maximum grant value of $500,000)

 These grants will help districts build or adopt model programs, based on evidence, to support students harmed by the opioid crisis, including programs and best practices in areas such as teaching approaches, curricular modifications, extended learning opportunities, mental health supports and restorative practices, forms of acceleration and enrichment, and using technology to foster student engagement and increase student learning, etc.

Districts can apply for these grants with external civic and community partners or with partner districts. We are primarily interested in improving special education programs serving these students, but we are also interested in the development and improvement of programs that address the needs of these harmed students before classification or in cases when these students have not been classified.

Innovation Grants

(maximum grant value of $500,000)

 These grants will enhance the ability of districts to introduce and test new, innovative approaches to support students impacted by the opioid crisis. These approaches can be at the level of the student, the class, the school and/or the district in relation to the family and community and include areas such as teaching approaches, curricular modifications, extended learning opportunities, mental health supports and restorative practices, forms of acceleration and enrichment, and using technology to foster student engagement and increase learning, etc.

Districts can apply for these grants with external civic and community partners or with partner districts. We are primarily interested in improving special education programs serving these students, but we are also interested in the development and improvement of programs that address the needs of these harmed students before classification or in cases when these students have not been classified.