Milwaukee, WI
‘Walk with their head held high’: Barbershop at Milwaukee high school gives free cuts and confidence to students
In a classroom turned barbershop on the third floor at Milwaukee’s Rufus King International High School, students sit for a haircut and talk about academics, sports and the latest trends with English teachers Cameron LeFlore and Emmanuel Johnson.
They’re the latest clients of The Shop in 310, a free on-campus barbershop club for Rufus King students. LeFlore said the cuts help young men feel more confident.
“Then they don’t need a hat or hoodie,” he said. “They can just walk with their head held high.”
The idea for the shop started when LeFlore brought his clippers to the school, hoping students would want a haircut.
Johnson, who was recently hired at the school, decided to collaborate with LeFlore once he learned they both had an interest in barbering.
Checking out the new club
The Shop in 310 opens daily at 3:30 p.m. except Thursdays. Among the regulars at The Shop in 310 are Rufus King juniors Elijah Ramirez and Demontrey Cochran.
Ramirez, 17, moved from Chicago to Milwaukee three months ago and was nervous about trying out a new barber for the first time in 10 years.
“I was scared at first, but then I gained confidence and trust in Mr. LeFlore,” Ramirez said.
He was pleased with the results of his first mid-taper cut.
“It came out better than I expected,” he said.
Since then, he’s gained opportunities with photographers and notices how his cut stands out.
Cochran, 16, is a student in LeFlore’s class and was excited to support the club.
“I really wanted to see how this would turn out,” Cochran said.
Ramirez and Cochran each encourage their peers to give it a try.
“Every man can vouch that after they get a haircut, they are going to feel good and that they can conquer the world because of their haircut and confidence from it,” Cochran said.
Financial relief for families
The Shop in 310 initially charged $10 per cut, but after being approved by the Office of Administration at Rufus King as an official club, the trims became free.
“If your child starts off as a freshman coming here, you’d be saving thousands by the time they’re a senior,” LeFlore said.
Before joining Rufus King, Johnson offered free cuts to students at Marshall High School, where he taught previously, and felt glad to do it.
“Back then, cuts were $25 to $30. Now barbers are charging $40 and up,” he said.
Cochran typically spends $35 for a mid-taper cut at his barber. Since coming to The Shop in 310, he’s been able to save money and also values how accessible it has been for his peers.
“There’s a lot of people I know who don’t even have barbershops near them, so it takes them a long time to finally get a cut,” he said.
LeFlore and Johnson use the club’s Instagram to post haircut tutorials for students interested in learning how to cut their own hair at home.
“I try to take a holistic approach and think back to what I would’ve wanted when I was in high school,” LeFlore said.
Visiting The Shop in 310 is more than just receiving a haircut for Ramirez and Cochran. It’s a place to feel welcomed.
“At first I saw them as just English teachers,” Ramirez said. “I like their communication and ability to understand what I’m specifically asking for.”
Beyond the sounds of clippers, Cochran sees the barbershop as peaceful, chill and liberating.
“As long as everything is appropriate this is a non-judgment zone,” he said.
Practice leads to improvement
LeFlore and Johnson are self-taught barbers who learned the skills on their own before bringing clippers into the classroom.
Johnson started off cutting his youngest brother’s hair as a favor while receiving feedback from his mentor Thomas Mclern, a barber with more than 30 years’ experience.
“While cutting my brother’s hair I realized that cutting hair was one of the best ways for me to serve the community,” he said. “Cutting hair is now an art for me.”
LeFlore’s path to barbering began after watching a friend cut his own hair, inspiring him to do the same.
“I told my friend to send me all the products I needed, then I went and brought everything,” he said.
LeFlore said it used to take an hour and a half to complete a haircut, now it’s only 20 minutes.
Tapping into diverse hair types
As their skills improved by cutting five to 10 heads a week, Johnson and LeFlore became more versatile.
Having already worked with diverse hair types at Marshall High School, Johnson was able to adjust to the needs of Rufus King students.
“At Marshall, I was exposed to different hair types and hair thinness, so at Rufus King, I learned quickly and had no problem,” Johnson said. “Every now and then when I get a hair type that’s not my own, it’s still a learning experience.”
Though LeFlore was nervous about cutting different hair textures, he practiced on his dad, whose hair is straighter, and watched YouTube videos to become better.
“I took my time and it turned out OK, but it wasn’t as good as I wanted it to be,” he said. “I learned that straighter hair is easier, you just have to be more precise.”
Cochran said he has interest in cutting his own hair after graduating high school.
“I want to purchase my own barber kit eventually, and that should save me at least $100 a month,” he said.
Johnson and LeFlore want people to know that whether it’s cutting hair or something different, practice is key.
“Whatever they’re looking to pursue, they need to find like-minded people who do the same things and practice together,” Johnson said.
Jonathan Aguilar is a visual journalist at Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service who is supported through a partnership between CatchLight Local and Report for America.
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Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam talks greater involvement, Giannis future
Bucks co-owner Jimmy Haslam says that he will have a greater involvement with the team and that includes the decision on if to re-sign Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The Milwaukee Bucks know their placement in the 2026 NBA Draft, slotted No. 10 for their first lottery pick in a decade. Who are some of the possible selections at that spot when June 23 rolls around?
Check out what the first post-lottery wave of mock drafts has to say, most of them pointing to same prospect, that being Nate Ament of Tennessee, a 6-10 freshman small forward.
Nate Ament, forward, Tennessee
From Spencer Woo of ESPN: “While Ament’s stock has slipped from an early top-five projection, he had productive stretches this season within a tricky team context and has room to help himself in workouts. Although scouts are split on whether he has star potential or projects better as a long-term supporting player, there is still plenty of intrigue around Ament in the lottery. As a tall skill player with shotmaking upside, Ament fits a player archetype that teams often love to swing on. As Milwaukee considers a post-Antetokounmpo future, a malleable upside swing such as Ament could be a fit.”
Kevin O’Connor of Yahoo! Sports: “The Bucks should take a swing to jump-start their new era, whether or not Giannis Antetokounmpo is part of it. Players who can handle, shoot off the dribble, and stand at 6-foot-10 don’t grow on trees. This physical foundation kept Ament in lottery consideration even after a dreadful start to his freshman season when he struggled to score efficiently and make an impact defensively. But over the second half of the year for Tennessee, he flipped a switch and shots began to fall. He averaged 23.8 points over a six-game stretch in January and February that reminded everyone why he was a top recruit in the country. Then he dealt with an ankle injury that ruined his momentum entering March and he severely struggled during the tournament. Bucks general manager Jon Horst has never been afraid to take risks though. If Ament pans out, it could look like a stroke of genius.”
Gary Parrish of CBS Sports: “Ament had an up-and-down freshman season for the Vols – but the upside isn’t hard to spot. Less than a year ago, the 2025 McDonald’s All-American was considered a possible top-five pick. So getting Ament here would be nice for a Bucks franchise that seems on the verge of rebuilding after presumably trading Giannis Antetokounmpo this offseason.”
The Ringer: “Barring some transactional magic, this could be Milwaukee’s best bite at the talent apple in the draft for a while. The Bucks don’t currently have control over a first-round pick until 2031. If Giannis Antetokounmpo decides it’s time to move on, this roster will be rudderless and talent-deprived. If Giannis decides not to move on, it’ll have a rudder but still won’t go anywhere. Less than ideal, but that makes this a ‘best player available’ scenario, or rather ‘best wager available.’ There are definitely more stable options in this range, but Ament’s higher possible outcomes justify this pick. Ament fell short of expectations this past season, and he slid from top-five consideration as a result, but the jumbo-sized, smooth-moving ball handler is still a worthy bet here. Handling the ball at 6-foot-10 is an intriguing enough skill to instill some belief that he could develop into a quality asset. And the Bucks can take the risk given their circumstances.
Adam Finkelstein of CBS Sports: “Ament is a polarizing prospect with a wide range of outcomes on draft night. A late-blooming 6-foot-10 combo-forward who is fluid, has touch, and skill, he’s also inconsistent and needs to get stronger. While his freshman year was up and down, Ament’s overall arc has been linear, and there’s still glaring potential. That upside makes him a logical choice for a Milwaukee team that has a very uncertain future ahead of them.”
Brian Lewis of New York Post: “After the run on guards, taking an upside swing on a gifted developmental player here seems like a worthy gamble for a Bucks team that could be in full-on rebuild in a post-Giannis era.”
Two other names mentioned
From Eric Nehm of The Athletic: “This was an incredibly difficult pick to make without knowing what the Bucks are going to do with Giannis Antetokounmpo. If the 10-time All-Star forward remains in Milwaukee, it might make more sense to look at someone like Yaxel Lendeborg, who could make an impact right away and give the Bucks more size and skill. Instead, though, I went with Philon, who has a lot of offensive upside and could be protected on the defensive end by Ryan Rollins. Philon is an electrifying offensive player who shot 50 percent from the field and 39 percent from 3 while averaging 22 points, 3.5 rebounds and five assists per game last season.”
From Kurt Helin of NBC Sports: “The Bucks need all the backcourt help they can get, and Burries may not be flashy, but he does a lot of things well — he can play on and off the ball, can knock down catch-and-shoot jumpers but also attack closeouts, and he gets downhill off screens and has a midrange pull-up game.”
Brad Paisley (Photo by Scott Dudelson/Getty Images)
MILWAUKEE – Brad Paisley is scheduled to perform at the BMO Pavilion in Milwaukee on Sept. 4.
Ticket information
What we know:
The ticket pre-sale for Brad’s fan club members, Paisley Nation, begins on Tuesday, May 12 at 10 am. All tickets available at BradPaisley.com.
The tour will also offer a variety of VIP packages and experiences for fans to take their concert experience to the next level.
FREE DOWNLOAD: Get breaking news alerts in the FOX LOCAL Mobile app for iOS or Android
Packages vary but include premium seats, a guided backstage tour, VIP-exclusive gift item, early entry & more. VIP package contents vary depending on the selected offer. For more information, visit VIPnation.com.
The Source: The information in this post was provided by Live Nation.
Billionaire Wes Edens, co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and co-owner of the Milwaukee Bucks NBA club, is shown at Sun Valley, Idaho, on July 9, 2015. The Wall Street Journal on Sunday identified Edens as the victim of a billion-dollar extortion plot allegedly hatched by an ex-lover. File Photo by Andrew Gombert/EPA
May 10 (UPI) — Wes Edens, the billionaire co-founder of Fortress Investment Group and an owner of the NBA’s Milwaukee Bucks, was the target of a billion-dollar extortion scheme allegedly perpetrated by an ex-lover, the Wall Street Journal reported Sunday.
A spokesman for Edens, 64, confirmed to the newspaper that the financier is the unnamed alleged victim in a federal indictment brought against Changli “Sophia” Luo of New York City.
Edens, one of world’s most successful global investment management firm leaders with Fortress, has developed and owned businesses in real estate, transportation, infrastructure, health care, financial services, media and entertainment.
He is also a high-profile sports team owner, including the Bucks and soccer club Aston Villa of the English Premier League. He is credited turning the Bucks from a perennial cellar dweller into a champion squad over a five-year span, culminating in the 2021 NBA championship.
But he also fell victim to a lurid alleged “sextortion” scheme, his spokesman confirmed to the WSJ, admitting the Edens is the unnamed “Victim 1” cited an indictment filed last year in Manhattan federal court against Luo.
The indictment reportedly accuses her of trying to extort Victim 1 of more than $1 billion by threatening to release videos and photos of them engaged in sex. Prosecutors alleged Luo also threatened to contact the victim’s family members and business partners in a threat to destroy his fortune if he did not pay up.
According to the indictment, Luo was arrested June 14 at JFK International Airport as she tried to board a flight to China, the New York Post reported.
“Mr. Edens will be making no comment on the case as the indictment speaks for itself with respect to the charges against the defendant,” his spokesman told the Journal. “Mr. Edens expects to testify under oath at the upcoming trial.”
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