(The Center Square) – The University of Colorado is receiving nearly $2 million from the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr. Hate Crimes Program Grant.
The grant worth $1,999,939 comes from the United States Department of Justice to support The University of Colorado Boulder’s Police Department (CUPD) and the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence (CSPV). The university will use the money to develop a comprehensive hate crime prevention, intervention, and investigation approach at all University of Colorado campuses statewide, according to the office of the U.S. Attorney for the District of Colorado.
“Funds will be used to educate audiences across the CU System and train campus officials on coordinated strategies for preventing, investigating, and addressing hate-based incidents and hate crimes in higher education,” the release said.
The grants will impact schools with a combined 60,000 students, 23,000 faculty and staff, plus 60 law enforcement officers. It will also serve as a model for other schools nationwide, the release said. When asked, an unnamed spokesman for the U.S. Attorney could not point to a single incident of hate crime his office had prosecuted involving the University of Colorado.
“The United States Attorney’s Office for the District of Colorado has a long-standing commitment both to investigating and prosecuting hate crimes and to engaging with the community on this topic,” Acting United States Attorney for the District of Colorado Matt Kirsch said in a statement. “Public education on the tools available to prevent and address hate crimes is fundamental to these efforts, and we are proud to work with University of Colorado.”
