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William Jones College Preparatory High School (commonly known as Jones College Prep) is a public 4-year selective-enrollment high school located in the
Printer's Row Printers Row, also known as Printing House Row, is a neighborhood located in the south of the Chicago downtown area known as the Loop. The heart of Printers Row is generally defined by Ida B. Wells Drive on the north, Polk Street on the south, P ...
neighborhood in downtown Chicago, Illinois, United States. Jones is operated by the
Chicago Public Schools Chicago Public Schools (CPS), officially classified as City of Chicago School District #299 for funding and districting reasons, in Chicago, Illinois, is the third-largest school district in the United States, after New York and Los Angeles. ...
district. Jones was named one of “America’s Best High Schools” for 2010 by '' Newsweek'' magazine. Named for Chicago's first school superintendent, William Jones, the school has undergone several name changes related to its focus, from Jones Commercial High School, to Jones Metropolitan High School of Business and Commerce, to Jones Academic Magnet High School. Jones adopted its current name and focus on college preparatory education in August 1998.


History

Jones was established in 1938 as Jones Commercial High School when the
Chicago Board of Education The Chicago Board of Education serves as the board of education (school board) for the Chicago Public Schools. The board traces its origins to the Board of School Inspectors, created in 1837. The board is currently appointed solely by the mayo ...
decided a school was needed to serve the downtown area of the city. The site chosen, at South State Street and West Harrison Street, housed a former elementary school. The old building was later demolished and replaced by a modern six-story structure in 1966. In addition to being a high school, Jones had a two-year program that offered a wide range of training for skilled office work. During the 1981–1982 school year, the school was renamed Jones Metropolitan High School of Business and Commerce after becoming a part of the Chicago Public Schools "Options for Knowledge" program. By the 1997–1998 academic year, Jones' business and commerce program was phased out and it became a college preparatory school. The school is one of 11 selective-enrollment schools offered by the Chicago Public Schools. These schools are generally for academically high-achieving students and require a test and high grades and test scores in order for applicants to be accepted. Other selective-enrollment schools in Chicago include
Whitney M. Young Magnet High School Whitney M. Young Magnet High School (locally known simply as Whitney Young) is a public magnet high school and middle school located in the Near West Side neighborhood in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Whitney Young is operated by the Chicag ...
,
Walter Payton College Preparatory High School Walter Payton College Preparatory High School (WPCP) is a public 4–year magnet high school located in the Old Town neighborhood on the near-north side of Chicago, Illinois, United States. Opened in 2000, Payton is operated by the Chicago Public ...
, and Hancock High School.


Demographics

As of December 2021, the racial makeup of Jones is 36.9% White, 29% Hispanic, 11.6% Black, 15.2% Asian, and 7.3% other. 35.5% of Jones students are categorized as "Low Income" and 1.1% as having limited English.


Campus

The original six-floor campus was designed by Perkins+Will in 1967 and served as a compact downtown school. For the 2001–2002 school year, Jones was temporarily located at
Near North Career Metropolitan High School Near North Career Metropolitan High School (formerly known as Near North Career Magnet High School and Near North Career Academy High School) was a State school, public 4–year magnet school, magnet high school located in the Old Town, Chicago, Ol ...
building while the site on State Street underwent renovation. In the early 2000s, the City of Chicago filed suit against
Pacific Garden Mission Pacific Garden Mission is a homeless shelter in the Near West Side section of Chicago, Illinois, founded in 1877 by Colonel George Clarke and his wife, Sarah. Nicknamed "The Old Lighthouse", it is the largest homeless shelter in Chicago and amon ...
, a Christian-based homeless shelter then located next door to Jones, in order to expand the school. Work began in 2011 on a new south building, designed by Chicago-based architecture firm
Perkins+Will Perkins&Will is a global design practice founded in 1935. Since 1986, the group has been a subsidiary of Lebanon-based Dar Al-Handasah (Arabic: دار الهندسة). Phil Harrison has been the firm's CEO since 2006. History The firm was estab ...
. Jones' new building opened for the 2013–2014 school year. The existing six-floor building was set for demolition until it was merged with the new building to increase capacity to 1800 students. The ''
Chicago Sun-Times The ''Chicago Sun-Times'' is a daily newspaper published in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Since 2022, it is the flagship paper of Chicago Public Media, and has the second largest circulation among Chicago newspapers, after the '' Chicag ...
'' called the building, with its price tag of over 100 million dollars, the most expensive school that the city has ever built. The seven-story building completed in 2013 features a pool and gymnasium on the seventh floor as well as a library and terraces. The building also has a theater for performing arts and school assemblies. The original building is six stories tall and features weight rooms, a theater, and additional classrooms.


Awards and recognition

In 2007, Jones College Prep was awarded a Gold Medal from '' U.S. News & World Report'' in their issue featuring the top 100 high schools in the nation based on college readiness, and in 2006 the school received the Blue Ribbon award from the Department of Education. Jones was recognized as one of “America’s Best High Schools” by ''U.S. News & 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). In 2019, Jones College Prep was ranked 91st among Best High Schools by ''U.S. News & World Report''.


Athletics

Jones competes in the
Chicago Public League The Chicago Public High School Athletic Association, commonly known as the Chicago Public League (CPL), is the interscholastic competition arm of the Chicago Public Schools. The governance of the CPL is set through the Department of Sports Admini ...
(CPL) and is a member of the Illinois High School Association (IHSA). In 2012, Jones' boys cross-country team won the IHSA 2A state title. From 2001 until 2014, the athletic program utilized the former Near North High School building at 1450 N. Larrabee Avenue.


Notable alumni

*
Chance the Rapper Chancelor Johnathan Bennett (born April 16, 1993), known professionally as Chance the Rapper, is an American rapper, singer-songwriter, and record producer. Born and raised in Chicago, Bennett released his debut mixtape '' 10 Day'' in 2012. He ...
(2011), hip-hop artist, Grammy winner * Andre Reynolds II (2019), soccer player


See also

* '' Chicago Police Dept. v. Mosley''


References


External links


William Jones College Preparatory website
{{authority control Magnet schools in Illinois Public high schools in Chicago Educational institutions established in 1938 1938 establishments in Illinois Central Chicago