What Thompson School District 61 does

Thompson Public Schools is a K-12 public school district headquartered at 424 3rd Street, Thompson, North Dakota, serving approximately 700 students across elementary (K-5), middle (6-8), and high school (9-12) grades on a single consolidated campus approximately seven miles south of Grand Forks. The district is overseen by a five-member School Board (Sarah Gustafson as President) and administered by Superintendent John Maus (12th year as superintendent, 18th year in the district). The high school/middle school is staffed by approximately 28 highly qualified educators, with Jason Schwabe serving as High School Principal (32 years in education, 23rd year as principal; 2026 NDASSP Principal of the Year) and Cassie Brown as Elementary Principal and Title IX Coordinator.

The district's core offering is comprehensive K-12 general education anchored in core academic subjects, augmented by dual credit college courses (Advanced Composition, College Algebra, Psychology, Sociology, Speech, Education/Special Education), 11 career-focused programs through the Grand Forks Area Career Impact Academy (Precision Agriculture, Automotive Technology, Aviation, Sports Medicine, Robotics, Culinary Arts, etc.), and an extensive extracurricular portfolio including NDHSAA athletics, band and choir, FBLA, FCCLA, National Honor Society, the student-run Tommie Store, and a Virtual Learning Program. The technology stack is a standard best-of-breed K-12 stack: Google Workspace for Education (Classroom, Sites, Drive) as the primary instructional platform, ClassLink for single sign-on, Infinite Campus as the student information system, ParentSquare for school-to-home communications, STAR 360 (Renaissance) for assessment, IXL for adaptive practice, and MackinVIA for digital library resources.

As a government entity, Thompson Public Schools is funded primarily through North Dakota's state per-pupil funding formula supplemented by local tax revenues and federal Title grants. Ancillary revenue is modest and consists of school meal fees ($2.00 breakfast, $3.00–$3.25 lunch), athletics and activity fees ($55–$90 per student with a $400 family cap; activity passes at $50–$100), and community fundraising through the Thompson Educational Endowment Foundation (TEEF), a separate non-profit that recently generated over $18,000 with $15,600+ directed to student scholarships. The operating model is community-led, with parent engagement via ParentSquare, PTO, TEEF, and the Athletic Booster Club forming the institutional backbone of the district's small-rural delivery model.

Name

Thompson School District 61

Legal name

Thompson Public Schools

Website

https://tps-k12.org

Company type

Private

Operating status

Operating

Short description

Thompson Public Schools is a K-12 public school district in Thompson, North Dakota, serving approximately 700 students from kindergarten through grade 12 on a single consolidated campus. The district delivers core academics, dual credit courses, 11 CTE programs via the Grand Forks Area Career Impact Academy, and extensive athletics, arts, and extracurricular activities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

K-12 Public Education

NAICS

Elementary and Secondary Schools (611110)

SIC

Services-Educational Services (8200)

akta.pro primary industry

Public K–12 Combined Schools (EDAJAAAE)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public School Districts (K–12) (EDADABAA)

Keywords

• Public K-12 education
• Dual credit courses
• Career technical education
• Interscholastic athletics programs
• Extracurricular student activities

Headquarters

HQ city

Thompson

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Student Meals: School breakfast and lunch program providing meals to students K-12. Breakfast priced at $2.00 for all grades; hot lunch priced at $3.00 for K-6 and $3.25 for grades 7-12.
2. Athletic and Activity Fees: Fees collected from students participating in athletics and extracurricular activities. Grades 9-12: $90.00, Grades 7-8: $70.00, Grades 5-6: $55.00, with a family cap of $400.00. Annual activity passes also sold: Adults $100, Students $50.
3. TEEF Fundraising: Thompson Educational Endowment Foundation conducts fundraisers including calendar raffles, 50/50 raffles at football games, concessions at softball games, and spring bundt cake sales. Fundraiser collected over $18,000 with over $15,600 going to student scholarships.
4. Public School Funding: Funded through state and local tax revenues, with per-pupil funding based on North Dakota's school funding formula. Additional funding from federal grants and title programs.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Thompson Public Schools operates a unified K-12 public school district serving approximately 700 students across elementary, middle, and high school grades within a single campus in Thompson, North Dakota. Core offerings include standard academic instruction, dual credit college courses, career-technical programs via the Career Impact Academy partnership, interscholastic athletics, music programs, and a wide range of extracurricular activities, supported by school meal programs and the student-run Tommie Store.

Product overview

Thompson Public Schools operates as a unified K-12 educational institution serving approximately 700 students from kindergarten through grade 12. The district offers a comprehensive educational portfolio centered on its core K-12 General Education program, supplemented by dual credit college courses and career-focused programs through the Career Impact Academy. Beyond academics, the district provides extensive extracurricular offerings including athletics, music programs (band and choir), drama, and student organizations. The school leverages digital platforms including ParentSquare for communications, Google Classroom and PowerSchool for instruction and student management, along with specialized learning tools such as STAR 360, iXL, and MackinVIA. Additional services include the student-run Tommie Store, scholarship programs through TEEF, and parent/student portal access for resources and forms.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• K-12 General Education
• Dual Credit College Courses
• Grand Forks Area Career Impact Academy Programs
• Athletics Programs
• Music Programs (Band & Choir)
• Extracurricular Activities and Student Organizations
• Tommie Store
• TEEF Scholarships and Classroom Grants
• School Meal Program
• Extended School Program (ESP)
• Virtual Learning Program
• Athletic Booster Club (TAB)

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $15,600 in student scholarships awarded from TEEF fundraiser
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration9 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• Grand Forks Area Career Impact AcademycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThompson High School is a member of the Grand Forks Area Career Impact Academy, which provides students access to career-focused programs including Precision Agriculture, Automotive Technology, Building Trades, Construction Essentials, Aviation, Sports Medicine, EMS, Robotics, Culinary Arts, Programming Essentials, and Civil Engineering/Architecture. This partnership extends educational opportunities typically unavailable in small rural schools.
• Thompson Educational Endowment Foundation (TEEF)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTEEF is a separate non-profit, tax-exempt corporation that works in cooperation with Thompson Public School to fund educational projects. TEEF provides scholarships for graduating seniors and awards funding for projects in teaching and learning through classroom grants. The foundation conducts fundraisers including calendar raffles, 50/50 raffles, and concessions.
• North Dakota High School Activities Association (NDHSAA)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerTommie athletic teams compete under the North Dakota High School Activities Association, which governs high school athletics and activities in the state.
• Booster Club (TAB)coreGTM or Marketing PartnerThompson Athletic Booster Club supports athletic programs through fundraising, volunteer efforts, and community engagement. Open to all parents regardless of sport or grade.
• ParentSquarecoreTechnology or IntegrationParentSquare is the primary school-to-home communication platform used by Thompson Public Schools, replacing multiple prior communication methods including Remind, Facebook, Twitter, Seesaw messages, and email. Includes StudentSquare for students over age 13 with parental consent.
• Google Workspace for EducationcoreTechnology or IntegrationGoogle Classroom and other Google Workspace tools serve as the primary platform for classroom instruction, assignments, and communication between teachers and students.
• Infinite CampuscoreTechnology or IntegrationStudent information system used for grades, attendance, and student records management.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Manvel Public School District: Rural K-12 district in the Grand Forks region serving a similarly small community. Comparable in enrollment, athletic competition, and reliance on state funding formula.
• Midway Public School District: Another small rural North Dakota K-12 district nearby operating with comparably limited staff and curriculum scope. Useful peer for benchmarking operational resilience and per-pupil cost.
• Larimore Public School District: Rural North Dakota public K-12 district in the Grand Forks region. Comparable in enrollment scale, funding sources, and NDHSAA athletics context.
• Northwood Public School District: Small North Dakota public school district serving a similarly sized rural community. Explicitly cited as the prior employer of Superintendent John Maus, making it a directly comparable peer on staffing scale, funding model, and operating profile.
• Hatton Public School District: Small rural North Dakota K-12 district operating under the same state funding formula and serving a similarly tight-knit community. Closely comparable peer on scale, athletic conference, and educational program breadth.
• Mayville-Portland Public Schools: Nearby small North Dakota K-12 district sharing NDHSAA and regional extracurricular context. Directly comparable on operating structure and size.

Broad incumbents

• Grand Forks Public Schools: Largest district in the Grand Forks region. Direct regional incumbent offering the Career Impact Academy programs Thompson accesses; a logical comparison on per-pupil outcomes, course breadth, and state aid dynamics.
• Bismarck Public Schools: Largest public school district in North Dakota. Broad incumbent used for benchmarking on state funding allocations, teacher pipeline, and curricular best practices that may filter down to smaller rural peers.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/TEEFND
• Xx.com/TPSND61

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles11 records

Subsidiaries1 record

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 Thompson School District 61