We went to the Jones open house today. Got there at 11:15, got inside nearly 1.5 hours later, spent a lot of time shivering in the cold. But the volunteer kids were all over, ready to answer questions while everyone was in line. Then there was a 20 minute intro to the school in the auditorium, then people were let loose to self-tour by walking around the building, where most classrooms were open, and there were some teachers and lots of Jones students present (as well as some Jones parents) to answer questions. The building is in great shape, and I hope it's re-used for something by CPS and not knocked down! Principal Powers mentioned briefly that 75 spots would be available for "kids that live close by" through a pre-law or pre-engineering track, and said that more information would be available on their website in mid-November, by which I assume he meant the boundaries will be mapped out and posted. So all around, it seemed like a happy, friendly environment. The three 8th graders I toured with all said they loved it and would love to go there but when pressed for reasons why, they seemed to mostly like the downtown location. However, they also liked the student art work we saw everywhere. The new building is being finished up, is right next door, and the fall 2013 class will be the first freshmen class in the new building, which will have many more arts/theater/sports facilities, including a swimming pool.