Rufus King named one of the most challenging high schools in America

MILWAUKEE (WITI) -- The Washington Post has released its list of the most challenging high schools in the country -- and Milwaukee's Rufus King High School is in the top 50 in the Midwest!

At Rufus King, students say going to college after high school is the norm.

"It`s actually a little bit ridiculous. The other day, I was walking though the hallways and I passed a group of younger students -- they might`ve been a couple sophomores but I think they`re majority freshmen and they were seriously talking about what college they were going to already," Nathaniel Edwards, who is going to Morehouse College said.

According to The Washington Post, Rufus King is the 49th most challenging high school in the Midwest -- and the third-best in Wisconsin.

Students point to the high expectations set by teachers.

"He kind of scared me into doing well. I remember he said to me one day in class 'this class is like a steam locomotive and if you fall off, you`ll be eating our dust.' It sounds kind of harsh but it forced me into doing the best I possibly could," Samantha Adams, who is choosing between Georgetown and UW-Madison said.

"She would just pile on, and pile on, and pile on this work and we`d say `Mrs. O`Keefe, we can`t do this` and she`d look at us and say `it only gets harder. You can do this. You can do this,'" Lance Dorsey, who is going to UW-Whitewater said.

From binomials to bilingual class discussions, much of the curriculum at Rufus King is advanced.

Students say they push one another to keep up.

"It`s not a dog-eat-dog world or anything. Everyone supports each other so you can rise to the level you want to be and they want to be," Thanhduy Tran, who is going to the University of Southern California said.

"It`s not that they`re competing for better grades to out-do one another. They`re competing for better grades because they know they have the capability to do even better, along with their peers," Helen Fetaw, who is choosing between Northwestern and UW-Madison said.

The competition is helping the school to stand out from others in the region.

Eastbrook Academy in Milwaukee, a private school came in 11th among the best in the Midwest.

Rufus King is the only MPS school to make the list -- which includes 225 schools.

CLICK HERE to view The Washington Post's list of America's Most Challenging High Schools.

CLICK HERE to learn more about Rufus King High School.