Enrollment
95
North Carolina · 2024-25 NCES data
Elementary school (grades K-5) · Harkers Island, NC
Harkers Island Elementary
Federal NCES profile for Harkers Island Elementary, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 54/100.
2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 370063000254
👥 S:T ratio 58
🌟 Gifted program 70
🎓 Counselors 62
📋 Attendance 26
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →
The verdict
Harkers Island Elementary earns 54/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of North Carolina schools. It is also one of the smallest schools in North Carolina.
- 54
- Resource Index · Higher
- 10.6:1
- small classes for North Carolina
- 97.4%
- free-lunch eligible
- 95
- students enrolled
Harkers Island Elementary has class sizes smaller than 93% of North Carolina schools. Computed live against every North Carolina school reporting to NCES.
School address
District: Carteret County Public Schools · North Carolina
NCES ID 370063000254 Verify on NCES CCD record →
Teachers (FTE)
9.0
Federal CCD staff survey
Students per teacher
10.6:1
vs 15.8:1 North Carolina avg
-33% vs state
Free-lunch eligible
97.4%
vs 66.0% North Carolina avg
+48% vs state
Student-teacher ratio in context
How Harkers Island Elementary compares with North Carolina and U.S. medians
What stands out at Harkers Island Elementary
Harkers Island Elementary is a high-poverty, small elementary school in Harkers Island, North Carolina, enrolling 95 students.
Classes run notably small here: at 10.6:1, Harkers Island Elementary is leaner than roughly 93% of North Carolina schools and 33% under the state's 15.8:1 norm, more adult attention per pupil than most peers.
Economic need runs somewhat above the state's typical profile, with 97.4% of students eligible for free meals.
This is a small campus: fewer students than 96% of North Carolina schools, with 95 enrolled.
Its Resource Investment Index lands in the upper third of 2,698 scored North Carolina schools.
Against 63 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #33.
Its student body is predominantly White (94% of enrollment), among the less diverse in the state (diversity index 12/100).
Counselor coverage is strong, about 190 students per counselor, inside the American School Counselor Association's recommended 250:1.
Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 29.5% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).
Its district draws 19.2% of revenue from federal sources, an above-typical federal share that tends to track a higher-need student population.
Carteret County Public Schools also operates West Carteret High (1,095 students) and Croatan High (1,019 students) alongside Harkers Island Elementary.
Sourced from NCES CCD, CRDC, and F-33 (federal records, not a quality verdict). How we source and compute this.
Source: National Center for Education Statistics Common Core of Data + CRDC + F-33 · 2024-25
How Harkers Island Elementary compares
Harkers Island Elementary on the metrics families compare, against North Carolina and U.S. means.
| Metric | This school | vs North Carolina | North Carolina avg | U.S. avg |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Students per teacher | 10.6:1 | ▼ 33% | 15.8:1 | 15.7:1 |
| Free-lunch eligible | 97.4% | ▲ 48% | 66.0% | 51.7% |
| Enrollment | 95 | top 96% | - | - |
Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25
10.6:1
Leaner classes than 85% of US schools, among the more generously staffed nationally.
95
Bigger than 10% of US schools by enrollment, a small campus.
Equity indicators (what these measure)
Economic need
97.4%
free-lunch eligible
- 48% above the North Carolina average of 66.0%
Above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
10.6:1
students per teacher
- 33% below state mean
Top 7% in North Carolina - lower ratio than 93% of state schools
Well under the widely cited 15:1 individualized-attention benchmark, among the leaner class loads nationally.
Engagement
29.5%
chronically absent (missed 10%+ of school days)
At or above 20%, the commonly used threshold for "high" chronic absenteeism, signaling significant barriers to regular attendance.
Funding equity
$13,086
per pupil, district-wide
- above North Carolina avg of $12,017
Well below the U.S. average per-pupil spend, a notably leaner funding position that may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors0.5 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
1
in-school suspensions + 0 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 1.1 per 100 students. Reported via the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Overview
- Common Core of Data (June 2026): enrollment, staffing, and the student-teacher ratio above.
- Civil Rights Data Collection: discipline counts and program access (AP, gifted, special education).
- F-33 School District Finance Survey: the district-wide per-pupil spending figures below.
Three separate federal collections, each on its own reporting cadence - which is why this school's numbers line up on a consistent basis against every other school and state on this site, rather than mixing figures pulled from different survey years.
Student demographics
White 93.7%
Hispanic or Latino 3.2%
Two or More 3.2%
Largest group: White at 93.7% of enrollment.
Student-body diversity index 12.0/100
Simpson diversity index - at 12.0, Harkers Island Elementary is less mixed than the North Carolina school average of 56.1.
Programs
Gifted & talented Yes
Funding & spending
District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Carteret County Public Schools, which includes Harkers Island Elementary.
$13,086
Per student
+9%
vs North Carolina
Avg $12,017
-21%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 26.2%
State 54.7%
Federal 19.2%
Source: NCES F-33 School District Finance Survey District-level finance · FY 2021-22 Per-pupil expenditure reflects the district-wide average. Individual school budgets are not reported at the federal level.
How Harkers Island Elementary Compares to District-Mates
| School | Enrollment | Economic Profile | Student-Teacher Ratio |
|---|---|---|---|
| West Carteret High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Croatan High | Larger | Lower economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| White Oak Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Broad Creek Middle | Larger | Similar economic need | Higher S:T ratio |
| Newport Elementary | Larger | Similar economic need | Similar S:T ratio |
Comparisons are relative to Harkers Island Elementary's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.
Other Schools in This District
- Enrollment
- 1,095
- Students per teacher
- 15.4:1
- Resource Index
- 38/100
- Enrollment
- 1,019
- Students per teacher
- 17.9:1
- Resource Index
- 42/100
- Enrollment
- 784
- Students per teacher
- 16:1
- Resource Index
- 52/100
- Enrollment
- 722
- Students per teacher
- 16.4:1
- Resource Index
- 44/100
- Enrollment
- 621
- Students per teacher
- 11.3:1
- Resource Index
- 49/100
Similar elementary schools statewide
Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of North Carolina, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.
Similar enrollment (~95 students)
Next steps
Verify locally before acting on Harkers Island Elementary's federal record.
- Compare Harkers Island Elementary against another school. Compare schools
- Carteret County Public Schools's spending and staffing shape this school. District profile
- Confirm current enrollment and boundaries with the school. Choosing guide
Federal record (CCD 2024-25, CRDC 2021-22) - PlainSchools assigns no subjective rating; the composite quality score is a transparent, reproducible index computed from this cited federal data.
Frequently asked questions about Harkers Island Elementary
How many students attend Harkers Island Elementary?
Harkers Island Elementary has 95 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Harkers Island, NC.
What is the student-teacher ratio at Harkers Island Elementary?
The student-teacher ratio at Harkers Island Elementary is 10.6:1, which is 33% lower than the North Carolina average of 15.8:1 and 32% lower than the national average of 15.7:1. Lower ratios generally mean more individual attention per student.
What percentage of students receive free lunch at Harkers Island Elementary?
97.4% of students at Harkers Island Elementary are eligible for free lunch, compared to the North Carolina average of 66.0%.
What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harkers Island Elementary?
The largest demographic group at Harkers Island Elementary is White at 93.7% of enrollment, in Harkers Island, NC.
What is the Resource Investment Index for Harkers Island Elementary?
Harkers Island Elementary has a Resource Investment Index of 54/100 (higher reported resources relative to schools nationally) based on 4 factors: student-teacher ratio, counselor availability, attendance rates. Not a test-score or academic measure (national median ~41/100, see methodology).
Is Harkers Island Elementary a good school?
Harkers Island Elementary earns 54/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes smaller than 93% of North Carolina schools. It is also one of the smallest schools in North Carolina. This is a resource snapshot, not an academic rating; see the Resource Investment Index question above for what the number does and doesn't measure.
What other schools are in Carteret County Public Schools?
Besides Harkers Island Elementary, Carteret County Public Schools also operates West Carteret High (1,095 students), Croatan High (1,019 students), and White Oak Elementary (784 students). See the Carteret County Public Schools district page for the complete list.
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Every figure on PlainSchools is rendered directly from the source NCES, CRDC and F-33 federal records, no number is typed in by an editor. Each school's figures reflect its most recent NCES/CRDC submission on file. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of June 2026.