Rufus King International High School, or Rufus King, is a public magnet high school located on the north side of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, part of the Milwaukee Public Schools district. The school is ranked the 130th public high school in the country by U.S. News and World Report, making it the top performing public high school in the state of Wisconsin.[4] The school offers the International Baccalaureate curriculum.international schools in china
The school was formerly named Rufus King International Baccalaureate High School. After the addition of a feeder middle years program in the 2010-2011 school year, the high school was renamed Rufus King International School – High School Campus.
Sixty percent of the students are of African American descent (compared to the state average of 11%), twenty percent of students are Caucasian and seven percent of students are Hispanic and Asian. Fifty-one percent of students are eligible for free school lunch. Rufus King's college preparatory curriculum is anchored by the International Baccalaureate Diploma Program (IBDP), which was established at the school in 1979, the first such school in the state of Wisconsin and one of the first in North America.The emphasis in the curriculum is on writing, speaking, critical thinking and independent application of knowledge. Full Diploma students are also required to write a 3,000-4,000 word original essay and volunteer at least 150 hours of service. All Rufus King students participate in pre-diploma and IB courses and more than half of the student population take at least one IB test with a success rate of 85.9% passing.95% of graduates matriculate to higher education.[9]
All students at Rufus King are required to complete four years of English, three years of Mathematics, Natural Science and Social Science, as well as two years of the same World Language. The languages offered at King include Spanish, German, and Latin. Among the school's academic electives are sociology, psychology, geography, and economics .Rufus King is considered the top high school in the state of Wisconsin based on U.S. News & World Report rankings that demonstrated high participation rates on International Baccalaureate exams and college readiness index ratings. In 2012, the school was ranked the 130th best high school in the nation by the magazine, making it in the top one-percent of public high schools in the country. The school was ranked the top public high school in Wisconsin by Newsweek Magazine in 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010. In 2010, Rufus King was ranked the 324th top high school in the country on Newsweek's rating,though the school has not made the list since Newsweek modified its ranking method, causing some local controversy.
The school has twice been designated a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence .and has been named a New Wisconsin Promise School of Excellence for the fifth year in a row, one of only 15 schools in the State of Wisconsin achieving the title.On May 8, 2002, the school was visited by President George W. Bush, who delivered an educational policy address in which he recognized Rufus King as one of the top high schools in the country.
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