It is the passing period between first and second period. Your typical Jones student makes his way from the sixth floor, down the side stairs to avoid any congestion from the main academic levels. Their commute is smooth, the sky is clear and the sun is out so the student is refreshed by the burst of warm air once he hits the ground floor. He is headed for the link.

Then he stops, dead in his tracks. The link is backed up all the way through the cafeteria. He waits for another kind student to allow him to merge into the clustered “link highway” so he can get to class in the north building, on time of course.

Jones students know this situation all too well. 2013 was the first year Jones operated with both buildings, there were approximately 1,100 students last year. The increase in the size of the student body was noticeable but nothing compared to this year.

For some students, specifically the upperclassmen, this seems like a very big number. “I think there are way too many students for the physical size of the buildings,” said Burke. “There is so much foot traffic between the buildings and within each individual building.”

Assistant Principal, Eric Fay, thinks otherwise. “More students does mean more money for the school to hire more teachers and to buy the books and the equipment and things like that that we need. 1,600 kids is kind of a really awesome size for a high school if you ask me,” Fay says.

It is obvious that changes will be made to accommodate for the influx of students. According to Fay, Jones will be adding about a dozen teachers and possibly one new counselor to its roster.

There is a bigger picture to this growth however. The concept of a “Jones student” is of major concern to many of the upperclassmen given the fact that they were some of the last students who experienced the original Jones College Prep.

Students, as well as administration, believe in this concept. “The ideal Jones student’s most important aspects are their recognition of individuality and their respect of each other’s differences,” says Azalia Martinez ‘15.

There is a big push to maintain this concept as well as the “Jones’ sense of family and community,” according to Fay. “We still have freshman connection. We still have Elit[e] mentors. The counselors still do their thing. During any presentation that we give, or when we train the teachers, we talk about the grad at grad values. We’ve really tried to keep that as a focal point. Or you know, that underlying spirit of everything we do. I think we’re trying,” Fay says.

There are positives and negatives to this exponential growth which can take a physical and metaphysical. One thing will remain the same, however. It “ is virtually guaranteed is that the schedule will be the same,” according to Fay. That will be the first time in four years that the schedule has maintained the same format for more than one school year.