Burke County Schools
Burke County Schools is a public school district based in Morganton, North Carolina, serving 11,667 students in 27 schools. By enrollment it ranks #31 of the 112 North Carolina districts with 1,000 or more students, larger than about 73% of them. Its schools average 432 students each, about the same as the North Carolina median of 446. Its superintendent is Dr Michael Swan. It spends about $10,046 per student on day-to-day operations, 10% less than the North Carolina median. It has roughly 16.8 students per teacher.
How Burke County compares
Spending and staffing
| Measure | Burke County | North Carolina median | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Current spending per student | $10,046 | $11,153 | FY2020-21 |
| Instruction spending per student | $6,235 | $6,920 | FY2020-21 |
| Total spending | $125.0 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Total revenue | $124.8 million | n/a | FY2020-21 |
| Teachers (full-time equivalent) | 694 | n/a | 2024-25 |
| Students per teacher | 16.8 | 15.7 | 2024-25 |
| Students per counselor | 417 | 358 | 2024-25 |
Spending: NCES school district finance survey (F-33), FY2020-21. Staffing and enrollment: NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25. Via the Urban Institute Education Data Portal. The North Carolina median compares districts with 1,000 or more students.
Leadership
Moves tracker →Dr Michael Swan
Source: NC Department of Public Instruction, EDDIE, checked 2026-10-19. Report a change
In the news
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Peer districts in North Carolina
Compare side by side →| District | Students | Schools | Spending per student | Students per teacher | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Craven County Board of EducationNew Bern | 12,152 | 26 | $10,497 | 17.6 | #29 |
| Lincoln County SchoolsLincolnton | 11,710 | 23 | $9,430 | 15.3 | #30 |
| Burke County SchoolsMorganton · this district | 11,667 | 27 | $10,046 | 16.8 | #31 |
| Chapel Hill-Carrboro City SchoolsChapel Hill | 11,353 | 20 | $14,165 | 12.7 | #32 |
| Rockingham County SchoolsEden | 11,114 | 23 | $10,432 | 17.5 | #33 |
Similar-size districts nationally
| District | Students | Spending per student | Students per teacher |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rockingham County Public SchoolsHarrisonburg, VA | 11,679 | $12,787 | 14.0 |
| Bartholomew Con School CorporationColumbus, IN | 11,657 | $9,902 | 16.1 |
| Elkhorn Public SchoolsElkhorn, NE | 11,653 | $10,473 | 14.5 |
| Paramount UnifiedParamount, CA | 11,648 | $15,272 | 19.3 |
Peers are the districts closest in enrollment, so they can still differ in many other ways. Enrollment, school counts and phone numbers are from the NCES Common Core of Data, 2024-25.
Printed from Superintendent's Corner: https://superintendentscorner.com/district-nc-burke-county-schools