Elementary school (grades K-5) · Cedar Rapids, IA

Harrison Elementary School

Federal NCES profile for Harrison Elementary School, including enrollment, faculty, free-lunch eligibility, demographics, and resource indicators - Resource Investment Index 39/100.

2024-25 NCES dataElementary school (grades K-5)NCES 190654000245
0/100100/10039/100
👥 S:T ratio
42
🌟 Gifted program
70
🎓 Counselors
43
📋 Attendance
0
Scored 0–100 from federal NCES and CRDC indicators, resource allocation, not test scores. Full methodology →

The verdict

Harrison Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Iowa schools.

#8 of 13
elementary schools in Cedar Rapids · Resource Index
39
Resource Index · Typical
14.6:1
students per teacher
67.4%
free-lunch eligible

Harrison Elementary School has class sizes near the Iowa median. Computed live against every Iowa school reporting to NCES.

By Resource Investment Index, Harrison Elementary School ranks #8 of 13 elementary schools in Cedar Rapids, IA.

Enrollment

277

Iowa · 2024-25 NCES data

Teachers (FTE)

19.0

Federal CCD staff survey

Students per teacher

14.6:1

vs 14.8:1 Iowa avg

-1% vs state

Free-lunch eligible

67.4%

vs 36.4% Iowa avg

+85% vs state

Student-teacher ratio in context

How Harrison Elementary School compares with Iowa and U.S. medians

At or below state median

Source: NCES Common Core of Data As of 2024-25 federal staff survey Total enrollment ÷ full-time-equivalent classroom teachers

What stands out at Harrison Elementary School

Harrison Elementary School is a higher-need, mid-sized elementary school in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, enrolling 277 students.

At 14.6:1, its student-teacher ratio sits close to the Iowa median, within a few percentage points of the 14.8:1 state norm, neither notably crowded nor notably small.

Economic need is high: 67.4% of students qualify for free meals, 85% above the Iowa average, a Title I-weighted population that federal funding formulas prioritise.

With 277 students, its enrollment sits close to the Iowa median campus size.

Its Resource Investment Index lands in the lower third of 1,322 scored Iowa schools.

Against 92 statewide peers matched on enrollment and economic need, it ranks mid-pack at #64.

Its student body is led by White (44%) and African American (25%), more mixed than most schools in the state (diversity index 71/100).

Counselor coverage runs a bit thin, about 283 students per counselor, somewhat past the ASCA-recommended 250:1 benchmark.

Chronic absenteeism is elevated: 47.3% of students missed 10% or more of school days (2021-22 Civil Rights Data Collection).

Among Cedar Rapids's elementary schools, it stands alongside Prairie Creek (846 students): Harrison Elementary School is smaller than that campus by headcount and runs leaner classes (14.6:1 vs 15.7:1).

Cedar Rapids Comm School District also operates John F Kennedy High School (1,648 students) and Thomas Jefferson High School (1,501 students) alongside Harrison Elementary School.

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 Harrison Elementary School compares

Harrison Elementary School on the metrics families compare, against Iowa and U.S. means.

Metric This school vs Iowa Iowa avg U.S. avg
Students per teacher 14.6:1 ▼ 1% 14.8:1 15.7:1
Free-lunch eligible 67.4% ▲ 85% 36.4% 51.7%
Enrollment 277 top 58% - -

Source: NCES Common Core of Data School-level CCD + state/national means from Public School Universe · 2024-25

14.6:1
Leaner classes than 51% of US schools, a middle-of-the-pack class size.
277
Bigger than 29% of US schools by enrollment, mid-sized for the country.

Equity indicators (what these measure)

Economic need
67.4%
free-lunch eligible - 85% above the Iowa average of 36.4%
Well above the 40% Title I schoolwide threshold, among the highest-need profiles in the state; federal funds support the whole school, not individual students.
Staffing depth
14.6:1
students per teacher - 1% below state mean
Top 60% in Iowa - lower ratio than 40% of state schools
Close to the 15:1 benchmark most often cited for individualized attention.
Engagement
47.3%
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
$13,962
per pupil, district-wide - above Iowa avg of $12,854
Somewhat below the U.S. average per-pupil spend; funding constraints may affect programs, facilities, and staffing.
Support staff
Counselors1.0 FTE
Student-support staffing from the Civil Rights Data Collection.
Discipline context
5
in-school suspensions + 14 out-of-school
Suspension rate: 1.8 per 100 students. Combined in-school and out-of-school rate: 6.9 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 43.7%
African American 24.9%
Hispanic or Latino 13.7%
Two or More 13.4%
Native Hawaiian / Pacific Islander 2.9%
American Indian / Alaska Native 1.4%

Largest group: White at 43.7% of enrollment.

Student-body diversity index 70.9/100

Simpson diversity index - at 70.9, Harrison Elementary School is more mixed than the Iowa school average of 33.8.

Programs

Gifted & talented Yes

Funding & spending

District-wide per-pupil expenditure for Cedar Rapids Comm School District, which includes Harrison Elementary School.

$13,962
Per student
+9%
vs Iowa
Avg $12,854
-16%
vs U.S.
Avg $16,593
Revenue mix
Local 37.7%
State 48.5%
Federal 13.9%

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 Harrison Elementary School Compares to District-Mates

School Enrollment Economic Profile Student-Teacher Ratio
John F Kennedy High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
Thomas Jefferson High School Larger Lower economic need Higher S:T ratio
George Washington High School Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Harding Middle School Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio
Taft Middle School Larger Lower economic need Similar S:T ratio

Comparisons are relative to Harrison Elementary School's own figures; each column derives from NCES Common Core of Data.

Other Schools in This District

Cedar Rapids Comm School District · 5 sibling schools

View district profile

Similar elementary schools in Cedar Rapids

6 comparable elementary schools (grades K-5) serving the same city.

Similar elementary schools statewide

Matched by enrollment size and by staffing ratio across all of Iowa, not just this city - a different peer set than the local comparisons above.

Next steps

Verify locally before acting on Harrison Elementary School's federal record.

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 Harrison Elementary School

How many students attend Harrison Elementary School?

Harrison Elementary School has 277 students enrolled. It is an elementary school in Cedar Rapids, IA.

What is the student-teacher ratio at Harrison Elementary School?

The student-teacher ratio at Harrison Elementary School is 14.6:1, which is 1% lower than the Iowa average of 14.8:1 and 7% 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 Harrison Elementary School?

67.4% of students at Harrison Elementary School are eligible for free lunch, compared to the Iowa average of 36.4%.

What is the racial and ethnic makeup of Harrison Elementary School?

The largest demographic group at Harrison Elementary School is White at 43.7% of enrollment, in Cedar Rapids, IA. Its student body is more racially and ethnically mixed than most US schools, with a diversity index of 70.9/100.

What is the Resource Investment Index for Harrison Elementary School?

Harrison Elementary School has a Resource Investment Index of 39/100 (typical 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).

How does Harrison Elementary School rank among elementary schools in Cedar Rapids?

By Resource Investment Index, Harrison Elementary School ranks #8 of 13 elementary schools in Cedar Rapids, IA. This compares federal resource and staffing data among local peers; it is not a test-score or academic ranking. See all elementary schools in Cedar Rapids on the city page.

Is Harrison Elementary School a good school?

Harrison Elementary School earns 39/100 on the Resource Investment Index, with class sizes near the Iowa median. It is also more racially and ethnically mixed than most Iowa schools. 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 Cedar Rapids Comm School District?

Besides Harrison Elementary School, Cedar Rapids Comm School District also operates John F Kennedy High School (1,648 students), Thomas Jefferson High School (1,501 students), and George Washington High School (1,182 students). See the Cedar Rapids Comm School District district page for the complete list.

Source: National Center for Education Statistics (NCES) CCD + Public School Universe (2024-25), CRDC (2021-22), F-33 District Finance Survey (FY 2021-22) · 2024-25 Data as of the 2024-25 school year. Coverage from U.S. Department of Education NCES Common Core of Data. Varies by entity type; administrative districts and certain charter networks may report only a subset of fields.

All federal data sources used on this page

Full source list and how we compute each figure: methodology page.

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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.