Harrisburg Elementary

Harrisburg Elementary, a big elementary school in Harrisburg, North Carolina, overseen by Cabarrus County Schools, instructs 850 students, covering grades pre-K through 5. Enrollment runs roughly 82% above the state mean of about 467.

Within Cabarrus County Schools, which oversees 44 schools and 35,568 students, Harrisburg Elementary is one campus in the system.

In terms of who attends, Harrisburg Elementary logs that the most-represented group is White (43%), with the rest of the student body spread across multiple groups. Beyond that, the school reports 27% Asian, 17% Black, 7% Hispanic, 6% multiracial. By comparison, Cabarrus County as a whole is about 59% White, so the school skews considerably less White than its surroundings.

Looking at the economic backdrop, Staff filings list 53 full-time-equivalent teachers, which works out to roughly 16.0:1 students per teacher. That figure is higher than the state norm's 14.9:1 average. An estimated 21% of students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunch, which schools and policymakers use as a rough income-mix signal. Set against Cabarrus County (around 56%), the school's rate is meaningfully below typical.

On a demographically-adjusted basis, Harrisburg Elementary tracks the demographic baseline. The model predicts 72.4% given the school's FRL share; actual proficiency is 82.3%.

In the broader community, the surrounding county (Cabarrus County) shows that median household earnings sit near $89,005, about 38% of the adult population holds a bachelor's degree or above, and census figures put the poverty rate at about 7%. In all, Cabarrus County runs 56 public schools (combined enrollment of about 43,278 students), of which Harrisburg Elementary is one.

The closest other public school is Hickory Ridge Middle, roughly 0.7 miles away. Within five miles, there are 8 other public schools. Ranking that nearby cluster on reported proficiency puts Harrisburg Elementary at 3rd of 8; the average score across the group is 66.1%.

Geographically, the school is in a bedroom-community area.

Trend over the last 7 years. Harrisburg Elementary's enrollment has decreased 19% since 2018, when it stood at 1,054 (now 850). White enrollment moved from 56% to 43% across the same window. Class-load math has narrowed: from 18.6:1 in 2018 to 16.0:1 in 2025.

On this page, members of the Harrisburg Elementary community share and discuss science fair prep, picture-day reminders, and bus-route questions. Anyone with firsthand experience at this school can post or comment.