Rutherford currently draws its students from the eastern side of Bay County with the majority being the Callaway, Cedar Grove, Springfield, Parker and Tyndall Air Force Base areas respectively.

Rutherford is host to a chapter of the International Baccalaureate program, Air Force Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps (JROTC), and the Communications and Technology Academy (Com/Tech).

with the aim of being ranked an "A" school and raising the achievement levels of all students in accordance with the No Child Left Behind Act.

Others recalled its unsanitary conditions such as toilets being clogged with feces, poor quality foods, and the shelter lacking skilled doctors with licenses.

[5] Also known as ComTech, Rutherford's Communications Technology course consists of classes that teach students how to use many computer programs such as Photoshop, Dreamweaver, Flash and Adobe Premier.

In addition to these program based courses, Comtech also has some core classes such as English and History.