Theodore Adam Jones was born on November 14, 1912, in Pueblo, Colorado, to Nellie Gant Jones and Adam Daniel Jones. Shortly after his birth, his father passed away, and he and his mother settled in Chicago, where he grew up on South Rhodes Avenue. Jones attended Douglas Elementary School, Doolittle Elementary School, and later, Wendell Phillips Junior and Senior High Schools. He graduated at the top of his class in 1929, earning the highest honors. Demonstrating academic excellence and determination even in the face of racial discrimination, he secured a general assembly tuition scholarship to the University of Illinois at Urbana, where he majored in accounting and economics. While at university, Jones experienced—and skillfully overcame—racism, using courage and strategic thinking to excel in the classroom. He supported himself by working as a waiter at a fraternity house, being among the few students of color at the institution. Upon graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in 1933 during the Great Depression, Jones struggled to find employment. He eventually obtained work as a clerk in an A&P store and later as a social worker with the Cook County Department of Public Welfare. When the agency shuttered, he built up a private […]