Fisher Community Unit School District

Fisher Community Unit School District, a local government school district headquartered in Fisher, Illinois, is a recipient of federal education grants from the U.S. Department of Education, operating as both a prime grantee and sub-recipient on K–12 school improvement and special education programs. The district does not hold federal contracts or contract vehicles; its federal footprint is entirely grant-based.

Fisher CUSD's customer concentration is heavily weighted toward education. The top three funding agencies account for 100% of recent awards: the Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (23 awards), the Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (2 awards), and the Department of Agriculture Rural Housing Service (1 award). As a prime grantee, Fisher CUSD has received annual Small, Rural School Achievement Program formula grants from the Office of Elementary and Secondary Education for five consecutive fiscal years (July 2022 through July 2026), with ultimate completion dates running through September 2027. In its sub-recipient role, Fisher CUSD receives pass-through funding from the Illinois State Board of Education, the prime grantee on federal education programs. Recent sub-recipient grants funded instructional staff salaries, reading intervention programs, professional development for special education implementation, student educational activities and materials for at-risk populations, special education cooperative services, and residential costs for students with disabilities, with awards dating from May 2022 through September 2026.

Activity has been sparse and episodic. Over the past five years, the district received two awards per year in 2022, 2023, and 2024, then five in 2025, and two in 2026, for a combined total of $2.1 million obligated across all 26 awards since 2007. Prime awards account for 69% of the footprint; sub-awards represent 31%. Only one award is scheduled to complete in the next twenty-four months, creating minimal recompete exposure in that window. Fisher CUSD's grant work is characteristic of small rural school districts: federal dollars support Title I reading interventions, IDEA special education services and staff capacity-building, homeless and at-risk student supports, and emergency relief programs routed through state education agencies.