Charleston Community Unit School District 1

What Charleston Community Unit School District 1 does

Charleston Community Unit School District 1 is an Illinois public K-12 unit school district operating six schools across Coles and Cumberland Counties: Charleston High School (grades 9-12), Charleston Middle School (grades 7-8), and four elementary schools (Jefferson, Mark Twain, Carl Sandburg, and Ashmore). The district delivers education through a competency-based framework in which student progress is measured against defined learning standards and scales rather than time-based averages, supported by an in-house learning management system called Empower where teachers assemble groups, assign activities, and score against learning targets. Parents access monitoring views through a separate guardian login.

The district's technology stack is a platform-plus-modules architecture layered on top of public-school operations. Skyward serves as the student information system for registration, attendance, busing, food-service accounts, and report cards (grades 7-12), while Clever provides single sign-on into a catalog of third-party instructional tools (Nearpod, GreatMinds InSync, Raz Kids, Lexia, Freckle, SchooLinks, Canvas at the high school). Microsoft 365 provides productivity, Tyler Technologies' My Ride K-12 provides live GPS bus tracking via mobile apps, e-Funds for Schools handles online payments tied to Skyward, Frontline manages staff absence and substitute workflows, Follett Destiny manages the library catalog, and Thrillshare handles parent communications. Every student receives a Dell laptop under a 1:1 device program, and Quest Food Service Management operates breakfast and lunch programs at all six buildings.

As a government entity, Charleston CUSD 1 has no commercial revenue model; funding flows from local property taxes, Illinois State Board of Education aid, and federal grants, and the district qualifies for the Community Eligibility Provision that makes all meals free. Go-to-market is enrollment-based and geographically bounded, with direct in-person delivery at the six school facilities and digital extension through Empower and the Clever portal. The customer base consists of resident families across the two-county attendance area plus supporting community members engaged through PTA, booster clubs, and the Excellence in Education Foundation. The district is governed by a locally elected Board of Education and administered by Superintendent Chad Burgett.

Name

Charleston Community Unit School District 1

Legal name

Charleston Community Unit School District 1

Website

https://charleston.k12.il.us

Company type

Private

Founded year

2014

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Charleston Community Unit School District 1 is an Illinois public K-12 school district operating six schools across Coles and Cumberland Counties, delivering competency-based education to resident students funded through property taxes and state aid.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Charleston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices8 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Supply Chain

Pricing tiers

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

Charleston CUSD 1 is a public K-12 school district that provides educational services to students from kindergarten through 12th grade across six schools in Coles and Cumberland Counties, Illinois. Instruction is delivered through a competency-based learning framework supported by the Empower Learning Management System, with the district also providing free meals to all students, transportation with GPS tracking, and college and career readiness programming. The district operates as a state government entity funded through property taxes, state aid, and federal grants rather than tuition.

Product overview

Charleston CUSD 1 operates as a K-12 public school district offering educational programs through a platform-plus-modules architecture. The core platform is Empower, a competency-based Learning Management System (LMS) that manages instructional resources, evidence of student learning, and assessment scores. Supporting this are Skyward (Student Information System for registration, attendance, grades, and busing), Clever (Single Sign-On portal for accessing educational programs), Microsoft 365 (productivity suite), e-Funds for Schools (online payments), My Ride K-12 (bus tracking), GCN Training (staff compliance training), SchooLinks (college/career readiness), and Quest Food Service (meal management). The district issues Dell laptops to all students as part of a 1:1 device initiative.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• K-12 Public Education Program Comprehensive K-12 public education program delivered across six schools (Charleston High School grades 9-12, Charleston Middle School grades 7-8, Jefferson Elementary grades 4-6, Ashmore Elementary K-4, Carl Sandburg Elementary grades 1-3, and Mark Twain Elementary kindergarten) serving students residing in the district boundaries. Includes competency-based learning framework, special education services, gifted education (GATE), and seven career pathway endorsements.
• School Food Service Program On-site breakfast and lunch meals served daily at all six school buildings through the district's food service program operated by Quest Food Service Management. All students qualify for free meals under the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), with additional a la carte items (entree $1.75, milk $0.50, other snacks/beverages $0.25 to $2.00) available for purchase.
• School Transportation Service with Bus GPS Tracking Daily school bus transportation for enrolled students, supported by the My Ride K-12 mobile application (iOS and Android) which provides live GPS tracking to show the exact location of assigned school buses for families. Contact: (217) 345-3016.
• 1:1 Student Laptop Program District initiative providing every K-12 student with a Dell laptop as part of a 1:1 device program, supporting personalized learning, competency-based education, and digital instruction through Empower LMS and other educational platforms.
• Special Education and Student Support Services Specialized services including Special Education (coordinated by Kristen Brown), Gifted and Talented Education (GATE), Homeless Education (Kristen Holly as Liaison), and Health Services (Brittany Schwenke, RN) for diverse student learning needs.
• Athletics and Extracurricular Programs Varsity athletics (boys basketball, wrestling, e-sports, state flag competition), arts programs, and extracurricular activities supported by the Trojan Booster Club, Charleston Music Boosters, and Joint PTA. Athletic Director Brian Deadmond oversees these programs.

Quantifiable outcome

• 90% of students feel safe in their classes, feel comfortable with their teachers, and feel respected at school

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles1 record

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration13 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Eight partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Eastern Illinois University (EIU)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with EIU to support Charleston Middle School following June 2026 storm damage. EIU provides educational expertise and support to the district. The district also partners with EIU for student programs like the 'Art From Here' exhibit at EIU's Doudna Fine Arts Center.
• Quest Food Service ManagementcoreTechnology or IntegrationQuest provides food service management to the district with a mission to provide fresh, high-quality food, exceptional responsiveness, and intensely personal service. Quest operates the district's breakfast and lunch programs at all six schools.
• Tyler TechnologiescoreTechnology or IntegrationTyler Technologies provides the My Ride K-12 app (formerly Ride360) for bus tracking. The app provides live GPS tracking to show the exact location of assigned school buses, helping families track their children's bus routes.
• Regional Office of Education #11coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerServes Clark, Coles, Cumberland, Douglas, Edgar, Moultrie, and Shelby Counties. Provides high-quality professional development and is the starting point for all licensure matters, working with the Illinois State Board of Education.
• MicrosoftcoreTechnology or IntegrationDistrict provides Microsoft 365 access to students and staff including Outlook email, Word, PowerPoint, Excel, and OneDrive cloud storage through Microsoft's education programs.
• ClevercoreTechnology or IntegrationClever provides a single sign-on dashboard connecting students to multiple online educational programs including Nearpod, GreatMinds InSync, Raz Kids, Lexia, and Freckle in one central location.
• SkywardcoreTechnology or IntegrationSkyward serves as the district's Student Information System (SIS) for online registration, attendance records, busing information, food service accounts, and report cards. Also used for employee payroll (Skyward Q) and family access.
• Student Data Privacy Consortium (SDPC)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerA collaborative of schools, districts, regional, territories and state agencies, policy makers, trade organizations and marketplace providers addressing student data privacy concerns. The district leverages SDPC for data privacy agreements with educational technology vendors.

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights3 records

Market position

Competitive moat4 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/CharlestonCusd1
• YouTubeyoutube.com/channel/UCHxE2d_oFeX0rDeZy0OGOBQ
• Facebookfacebook.com/CharlestonCUSD1
• Instagraminstagram.com/charlestoncusd1
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/ashmore-elementary-school

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles9 records

Subsidiaries6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Charleston Community Unit School District 1