Imperial Unified School District

What Imperial Unified School District does

Imperial Unified School District is a public K-12 school district headquartered at 219 North E Street in Imperial, California, serving approximately 4,296 students across six schools: three elementary schools (Ben Hulse, T.L. Waggoner, Imperial Cross), one middle school (Frank M. Wright), one comprehensive high school (Imperial High School), and one alternative continuation high school (Imperial Avenue Holbrook). The district employs 455 staff (218 certificated, 205 classified, and 32 management/supervisory/confidential) under Superintendent Bryan Thomason. Student demographics are 86.6% Hispanic, 9.6% White, and the remainder split across Asian, African American, and other categories, with 22% English learners (majority Spanish-speaking), 50.2% low-income, and 5% foster youth. Geographic scope is limited to Imperial County in California's Imperial Valley, near the Mexican border.

IUSD delivers TK-12 instructional programs including standard curriculum, English learner support, special education, Title I services, and the proprietary Imperial Valley Discovery Zone (IVDZ) STEM program, which uses trained high school students to deliver NGSS-aligned science instruction to grades 2-5. The district runs an integrated digital infrastructure anchored by Edupoint Synergy (Student Information System) powering ParentVue and StudentVue portals, Clever for single sign-on, PowerSchool's school locator, Schoolcafe for meal management, FMX for facilities work orders, Freshservice for IT ticketing, Smore for newsletters, and Simbli for board management. Standard federal and state programs are administered, including Title I, Title III, ESSER III funds, Education Protection Account, E-Rate telecommunications funding, McKinney-Vento homeless services, and the LCAP three-year planning framework.

The district is a government entity, not a commercial enterprise, and is funded through California's Local Control Funding Formula (LCFF), federal Title programs, and ESSER funds. Families pay no tuition; universal free breakfast and lunch are provided for all enrolled students in 2025-2026. Enrollment is geographically determined by attendance zone, supplemented by intradistrict and interdistrict transfer programs. Revenue, ownership structure, and growth dynamics follow public sector funding mechanics rather than commercial market dynamics.

Name

Imperial Unified School District

Legal name

Imperial Unified School District

Website

https://do.imperialusd.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Imperial Unified School District is a public K-12 school district in Imperial, California, serving approximately 4,296 TK-12 students across six schools with 455 employees. It is funded through California's LCFF and federal programs, offering free meals and proprietary STEM programming.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Public Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (61111)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public K–12 Combined Schools (EDAJAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Middle Schools (EDAJAAAC)

Keywords

• Public K-12 education
• School district services
• STEM curriculum programs
• English learner support
• Special education services

Headquarters

HQ city

Imperial

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. State Formula Funding (LCFF): California's Local Control Funding Formula provides base, supplemental, and concentration grants to fund district operations, instructional programs, and support services
2. Title I Federal Funding: Federal funding for schools with high percentages of low-income students to support academic achievement
3. Title III Federal Funding: Federal funding to support English learners through specialized instructional programs and language development
4. ESSER III Funds: Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief funds for pandemic recovery and educational continuity
5. Education Protection Account: State funding component providing transparency in how funds are spent on instructional materials, teacher development, and school safety

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Imperial Unified School District delivers tuition-free TK-12 public education to approximately 4,296 students across six schools in Imperial, California, offering standard academic instruction alongside signature programs such as the Imperial Valley Discovery Zone (IVDZ) STEM curriculum for grades 2-5, English learner support (ELPAC), special education services, Title I support, free breakfast and lunch, and student transportation. Operational digital infrastructure includes the ParentVue/StudentVue portal, Clever SSO, school locator, and ancillary support services (food, transportation, maintenance, technology).

Product overview

Imperial Unified School District operates as a traditional public K-12 school district serving approximately 4,296 students across six schools in Imperial, California. The district offers a comprehensive educational ecosystem combining physical schooling with digital platforms. Core academic offerings include the IVDZ (Imperial Valley Discovery Zone) STEM program for grades 2-5, standard TK-12 curriculum, special education, English learner programs, and Title I support. The district's digital infrastructure includes multiple interconnected platforms: ParentVue/StudentVue (powered by Synergy/Edupoint) for student information access, Clever for single sign-on to educational apps, FMX for facilities work orders, Schoolcafe for meal management, and various Google services for collaboration. The Technology Services department supports all digital operations, while E-Rate program participation helps fund telecommunications infrastructure. Transportation and food services round out core operations, with free meals offered in 2025-2026.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Imperial Valley Discovery Zone (IVDZ) STEM Program A signature STEM education program for grades 2-5 in which high school students are trained as instructors to deliver NGSS-aligned hands-on science experiences, designed to increase STEM literacy across the Imperial Valley community.
• Transportation Services District-operated student transportation including daily bus routes, field trip transport, and athletic event transportation using a modern fleet under a rigorous safety plan.
• Food Services District-wide nutritious meal program providing free breakfast and lunch to all enrolled students for the 2025-2026 school year, managed through the Schoolcafe platform with published school menus.
• ELPAC Testing Program State-required English Language Proficiency Assessments for California used to identify English learners and measure annual progress in listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills.
• Technology Services Department providing technology infrastructure, support, and digital tools to ensure students and staff have reliable access to district computing resources, networks, and educational applications.

Quantifiable outcome

• All schools in the district have received recognition from the state of California
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers6 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration18 records

Feature2 records

Scale indicators7 records

Recent moves1 record

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Central Union High School District: Imperial County high school district serving El Centro and surrounding communities. Comparable in scale, Title I dependency, and Imperial Valley demographics; directly relevant for feeder patterns and program benchmarking.
• El Centro Elementary School District: Imperial Valley K-8 district serving El Centro, CA with overlapping Title I and English learner demographics. Operates similar parent engagement and bilingual programs within the same county labor market as IUSD.
• Calexico Unified School District: Adjacent K-12 district serving Calexico, CA in Imperial County with similar demographic profile (majority Hispanic, high EL and low-income populations). Most direct geographic and demographic peer to IUSD.
• Brawley Union High School District: Imperial Valley high school district serving Brawley, CA. Similar Title I student body, agricultural-community demographics, and rural Imperial County operating context as IUSD's secondary schools.

Broad incumbents

• Sweetwater Union High School District: Large Southern California high school district serving the South Bay area of San Diego County. Overlapping Title I and English learner demographics with IUSD, but operating at substantially larger scale across multiple cities.
• Santa Ana Unified School District: Orange County K-12 district with a very high EL and low-income student population (~90% Hispanic). Comparable in LCFF supplemental-grant intensity and English learner program design to IUSD.
• Chula Vista Elementary School District: Large Southern California K-6 district serving Chula Vista with a high EL and Hispanic student population. Comparable in bilingual and Title I program intensity to IUSD but with much larger enrollment.
• Vista Unified School District: Mid-sized Southern California K-12 district in northern San Diego County with overlapping Title I demographics and similar LCFF formula dynamics. Comparable operational scale and student services footprint to IUSD.
• San Diego Unified School District: Much larger Southern California K-12 district (~100k+ students) operating across urban and suburban San Diego. Comparable LCFF funding structure and California curriculum standards but at significantly greater scale than IUSD.
• Poway Unified School District: Larger San Diego County K-12 district known for strong academic outcomes and consistent CA Distinguished School awards. Useful benchmark for IUSD's award trajectory and STEM program scalability, despite differing demographics.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xtwitter.com/IUSD1
• Facebookfacebook.com/imperial.unified.1

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 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 Imperial Unified School District