| Jones College Preparatory | |
|---|---|
| Established | 1908 (Established as a college prep in 1999) |
| Type | Selective Enrollment Prep |
| Principal | Dr. Joseph Powers |
| Students | 800 (approx) |
| Grades | 9–12 |
| Location | Chicago, Illinois, USA |
| Colors | Navy and white |
| Mascot | The Eagle |
| Website | http://www.jonescollegeprep.org |
William Jones College Preparatory, commonly known as Jones College Prep, is a four-year selective enrollment prep school located in Chicago, Illinois, USA. Jones was named one of “America’s Best High Schools” for 2010 by Newsweek magazine.
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Jones College Prep, formerly Jones Metropolitan High School of Business and Commerce, Jones Commercial High School, and Jones Academic Magnet, came into existence in February 1938. The building, built shortly after the Chicago fire, was located at Harrison Street and Plymouth Court. The Chicago Board of Education, recognizing a need for commercial business education, remodeled an old building, once Jones Elementary School and later Jones Continuation School, to house Jones High School. It was named for William Jones, who, in 1840, became the first president of the Board of Education. He encouraged the education of every child, including girls, a progressive position during his time.
The present building, designed in 1967 to resemble an office building, was opened, and the Jones' program was designed for juniors and seniors, qualifying them for office work after graduation. Jones was the first Chicago school to engage in the Cooperative Work-Study program organized to give students practical experience in their subject and skill areas.
Although Jones High School has always enrolled students from any part of the city, during the spring of 1982, Jones became part of the Chicago Board of Education's "Options For Knowledge" program. Magnet schools and programs were created to provide Chicago Public Schools' students with unique educational opportunities in an integrated setting. The magnet school policy is designed to ensure equity and equal access to magnet schools for all children while maintaining racially balanced schools.
The school is a selective enrollment high school based on test scores that offers 20 advanced placement courses in addition to a rigorous curriculum focused on the school's mission statement for the 'Grad at Grad.'[1]
In 2007, Jones College Prep was awarded a Gold Medal from US News and World Report in their issue of the top 100 high schools in the nation based on college readiness, and in 2006 received the Blue Ribbon award from the Department of Education.[2][3] Jones was recognized as one of “America’s Best High Schools” by U.S. News and World Report and was ranked in the top 100 high schools in 2010. Jones ranked in the “Top 10” among Illinois public high schools on the PSAE state assessment (2008 and 2009)[4].
The student body at JCP is a diverse selection of students from throughout the City of Chicago. [5]
Jones College Prep offers more than sixty different extra-curricular clubs and activities such as: African American Club, ALAS (Assoc. of Latin American Students),Dance Team, Spirit Squad, Asian American Club, The Alpha Gents/Gems (Youth Leadership Organization), Slam Team (Poetry Club), Debate, Gay/Straight Alliance, Gospel Choir, International Thespian Society, Math Team, WEJam Vocal Jazz Choir, Student Government Association, National Honor Society, Spanish National Honor Society, Chess Club, Robotics, and many others.
Jones College Prep has two student run newspapers: State & Harrison, first published in 2004, is targeted at parents, teachers and alumni, but has been on hiatus since its last published edition in June 2007. The other, more widely-read paper is The Eagles Eye, centers around student affairs and news and began publication in 1998. Prior to the 2006-2007 school year, the Eagle's Eye was published monthly; however, due to severe changes in the classes concerned with producing the paper, irregularity in production has insued.
Since 2005, the school's literary magazine, "The Litmag," has showcased student submitted poetry, artwork and stories. Submissions for Litmag are taken for much of the school year culminating in one anthology published at the end of the school year.