Independent School District I-29

Independent School District I-29, doing business as Norman Public Schools, is a U.S. local government school district and federal grant recipient based in Norman, Oklahoma, serving approximately 15,450 students. The district operates as a prime recipient on federal education and student-support grants and as a sub-recipient flowing federal funds through state agencies and intermediate grantees; it does not hold federal prime contracts.

Norman Public Schools' federal footprint centers on education and student-support programming. The district holds recurring formula grants from the Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education under the Indian Education Grants to Local Educational Agencies program (CFDA 84.060), with annual awards of approximately $533 thousand to $580 thousand supporting culturally responsive instruction, teacher professional development, and academic support for American Indian and Alaska Native students. Recent awards in this line include a $579,847 formula grant issued July 1, 2026, for the period ending June 30, 2027, and a $557,059 award for July 1, 2025 through June 30, 2026. The district also received a project grant from the Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education under Project REACH (Recruitment, Education and Certification for Mental Health Professionals) effective January 1, 2025 through December 31, 2026, and a $461 thousand plus Indian Education formula grant for the 2022–2023 program year. Additionally, Norman Public Schools holds a Bureau of Justice Assistance project grant for the Wellness Initiative for Safe Education Project (Project WISE), awarded October 1, 2024, running through September 30, 2027, which funds parent and staff mental health training, conscious discipline programming, and tier-three intervention services including case management and therapeutic intervention.

As a sub-recipient, Norman Public Schools flows sub-awards through the Oklahoma Department of Education (primarily for school meal reimbursements under child nutrition programs), the Oklahoma Department of Career and Technology Education (vocational education basic grants), the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services (school-based prevention and mental health services), and the Oklahoma District Attorneys Council (student victim advocacy). The district maintains a multi-year sub-award relationship for child nutrition program funding, with roughly monthly reimbursement sub-awards from the state department, and sub-awards for vocational education, mental health services, and crime victim advocacy.

Federal grant activity shows growth through 2024 (fourteen awards that year) followed by a decline in 2025 and 2026 (five and two awards respectively), reflecting the mix of recurring annual formula awards and discrete project grants. The district's top customer agencies by award count are the Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education (21 awards), the Department of Agriculture Food and Nutrition Service (13 awards through state reflow), and the Department of Justice (4 awards combined across victim services and justice assistance). Combined obligated dollars across all awards total $35.8 million, with only three awards scheduled for ultimate completion inside the next twenty-four months.