Member School Spotlight: Rushford-Peterson High School

Editor’s Note: Welcome to Member School Spotlight, the League’s newest feature series that showcases the academic and co-curricular excellence in our Member Schools. 

Spotlight: Hugging the Iowa border in southeastern Minnesota is Fillmore County, an 865-square mile parcel that is named after President Millard Fillmore. Fourteen small towns dot the county, many that host schools or co-ops that can boast numerous academic and activities successes. 

Despite its enrollment of 215 students, Rushford-Peterson, however, doesn’t view itself as a small school. Its staff proclaims that students receive a “big city education” with a “small town feel.”

The two communities merged in 1990 to form the Rushford-Peterson School District. The consolidation began in 1989 following the departure of 18 students from Peterson under Minnesota’s open-enrollment provision. Peterson is located nine minutes, or 5.9 miles, to the southwest of Rushford.

Rushford-Peterson offers a blend of AP courses for students who are planning to attend college yet also places high value on students who seek to learn technical and agricultural skills. Regardless of a student’s path, Rushford-Peterson emphasizes “empowering all for lifelong learning.”

In 2007, Rushford made headlines as one of many southeastern Minnesota communities that was overwhelmed with flash flooding in the wake of nearly 18 inches of rain in just more than a day. The flooding caused more than $67 million in damage. 

Did You Know?

• Rushford-Peterson’s school colors are green and gold and they are nicknamed the Trojans. 
• The first state title for Rushford High School was captured by the Boys Basketball Team in 1989. 
• The "Year of the Tiger" refers to the 1985-1986 school year, when Peterson went to the state tournament in Football, placed third in Boys Basketball and had other strong teams. At that time, Peterson High School was nicknamed the Tigers.
• Rushford-Peterson graduate Steve Heiden played football at South Dakota State and currently serves as the offensive line coach for the New York Jets. 
• Rushford-Peterson graduate Matt Ulrich played football at Winona State and is currently the special teams coordinator at Mercer University. 
• The Rushford-Peterson Boys Basketball team made five consecutive state tournament trips from 1997-2001 and had another three-year run from 2005-2007.
• Rushford-Peterson’s One Act Play program has been a subsection champion 13 times, including a run of nine consecutive and another spree of four over the past 19 years. The run includes five times as a runner-up and four section crowns. 
• The Rushford-Peterson Boys Cross Country team is ranked No. 3 in Class A and has six consecutive state meet appearances.
• During the 2014-2015 and 2015-2016 Boys Basketball seasons, Minneapolis North, featuring current NFL standout Tyler Johnson, came to Rushford-Peterson to play games. During those trips, the Polars spent the night in a hotel, ate with the Rushford-Peterson team and ventured to a dairy farm to learn how to milk cows.
• Rushford-Peterson graduates Jovan Wolfred and Jason Degeorge, have created a “pay-it-forward/pay-it-back" scholarship. The generous scholarship is awarded to a graduating senior who wants to make a difference in the world and give back to the community. Students need to demonstrate the change they want to make in the world and how they can give back to the community that gave them so much.
• Rushford-Peterson offers more than 45 concurrent enrollment college credits to students each school year. 
• Every student in their junior year goes on a full-day job shadow in a career of interest. 

They said it: “Rushford-Peterson Schools values education-based opportunities for all our students. We view after-school activities as an extension of the school day and as an additional "class hour" for them. Students finding their athletic and/or artistic passion and being able to pursue it with caring adults is a level of pride for our school. We strive to help our students take the lessons learned in academics, arts, and athletics to be difference makers in the world." Jake Timm, Principal, Rushford-Peterson High School