Lowpoint-Washburn Community Unit School District 21

Lowpoint-Washburn Community Unit School District 21, doing business as Lowpoint Washburn Cusd 21, is a U.S. local government school district headquartered in Washburn, Illinois that receives federal education grants as a prime recipient from the U.S. Department of Education. The district does not hold federal contracts and operates exclusively in the grant space, with 67% of its recent federal funding flowing through prime grant awards and 33% through sub-grant awards routed via the Illinois State Board of Education.

The district's federal grant portfolio centers on K-12 education funding for at-risk and special-needs students. Since 2022, Lowpoint-Washburn has served as prime recipient on five Small, Rural School Achievement Program (SRSAP) formula grants from the Department of Education's Office of Elementary and Secondary Education, with awards issued annually on July 1 and completion dates of September 30 in the following fiscal year. Most recent SRSAP awards include the July 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027 grant and the July 1, 2025 through September 30, 2026 grant. As a sub-recipient, the district receives flow-through funding from the Illinois State Board of Education under Title I (supporting instructional staff for academically at-risk students), the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act Part B (funding services for students with disabilities ages three through twenty-one in the least restrictive environment), and Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief II grants. Sub-awards cover instructional salaries, professional development for staff, materials, equipment, and support services for homeless, neglected, and at-risk student populations.

Customer concentration is singular: the Department of Education Office of Elementary and Secondary Education accounts for 24 of 27 recent awards, with the Department of Education Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services providing three. The district has obligated $1.7 million across all federal funding over its visible history, averaging activity on one to five awards annually, with a modest uptick to five awards in 2024 before declining to two in 2026. One award reaches ultimate completion in the next twenty-four months. Lowpoint-Washburn operates exclusively as a recipient of formula-grant and flow-through education funding; it does not hold parent IDIQs, GWACs, or BPAs, and does not serve as a subcontractor on federal contracts.