Continued from Author Bio

In 1961, after graduating from the University of Colorado Law School, Mr. Jones began his career in cable by representing cable companies in their acquisition efforts across the United States. In 1964, Mr. Jones put his career on hold to run for the U.S. Congress in Colorado's First Congressional District (Denver). He was defeated, returned to lawyering in mountain towns, and set his sights on acquiring his first cable system.

That he did in 1967, when he persuaded the owner of the Georgetown, Colorado cable system to accept $1,000 down on a purchase price of $12,000. Mr. Jones raised the down payment by borrowing against his Volkswagen and collecting the remaining money from those of the system's 100 subscribers who had delinquent accounts.

Realizing that the key to success in cable was financing for the capital-intensive task of buying equipment and supporting the negative cash flows occasioned during the construction phase of new systems, Mr. Jones became the first in the industry to organize public limited partnerships to raise capital to finance cable acquisitions. In 1970, Jones Intercable, Inc. was formed to serve as the vehicle for the limited partnerships. His partnerships raised more than $1 billion for the purchase of cable properties. Larger competitors adopted his limited partnership financing strategy which has further authenticated Mr. Jones' innovative business approach.

In 1987, he founded cable network and distance learning company Mind Extension University: The Education Network (ME/U). ME/U served as a global electronic campus, providing access to courses and degree programs from dozens of leading colleges and universities, including California State University at Dominguez Hills, The George Washington University, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs, and University of Delaware.

During the following decade, Mr. Jones' vision for employing communications technology in the service of education branched into numerous business activities. They included Knowledge TV, a 24-hour cable and satellite television channel that provided useful, personally relevant news and information focusing on the important "need to know" subjects for adults today: health, money, and technology. A sister company, The Knowledge Store®, is a virtual store that is accessible around the clock via telephone and the Internet, offering quality, brand-name learning products from leading experts.

Jones Knowledge, Inc. continues Mr. Jones' commitment to provide global access to higher education. To increase the number of academic programs available to this growing population of adult learners, Mr. Jones established e-education, also known as The Jones Standard, a company that provides the software, technical support and training that colleges and universities require in order to become "Cyberschools," the title of one of his recent books.

Mr. Jones founded the world's first true cyberschool, Jones International University™: The University of the Web™, in 1995. Jones International University was the first academic institution created from the ground up for the Internet. It is the first school with a "virtual" campus accepted into candidacy for regional accreditation from the North Central Association of Colleges and Schools, the same regional accreditation agency for such prestigious universities as Northwestern, Ohio State, and the University of Colorado.

In 1995, Mr. Jones founded the Global Alliance for Transnational Education (GATE)™. He currently serves as the organization's Chairman. GATE is dedicated to fostering access to quality higher education resources on a global basis, focusing on transnational education.

Through Jones Entertainment Group™ he has produced several movies including The Secret of Roan Inish (directed by award-winning director John Sayles), Household Saints, The Whipping Boy, The Story Lady, and The Little Kidnappers, starring such notable actors as Charlton Heston, Jessica Tandy, Tracey Ullman, Vincent D'Onofrio, and George C. Scott. In addition, he has produced various CD-ROMs and education support websites, including the Jones Telecommunications and Multimedia Encyclopedia™.

Mr. Jones was born in 1930 in Jackson Center, Pennsylvania. He earned an undergraduate degree in economics from Allegheny College and did a stint in the U.S. Navy, principally as an underwater bomb disposal officer. He then obtained a Juris Doctor degree from the University of Colorado School of Law. He completed an Executive Program at Stanford Business School in 1973. In 1985, he received an honorary Doctorate of Humane Letters from Allegheny College, Pennsylvania and in 1992, an honorary Doctor of Education degree from Regis University, Colorado. In 1994, Mr. Jones received an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Heidelberg College. He is a member of the Board of Directors and the Executive Committee for the National Cable Television Association (NCTA). Additionally, Mr. Jones has served on the Board of Governors for the American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) and currently serves on the Board and Education Council of the National Alliance of Business (NAB). Mr. Jones is also one of the founding members of the James Madison National Council, the first national advisory body in the 190-year history of the United States Library of Congress.

In August 1989, the Cable Television Administration and Marketing Society (CTAM) awarded Mr. Jones its Grand Tam Award for being "a man of vision who has made an enormous contribution to this industry by furthering our quest for excellence." In March 1990, Mr. Jones was awarded the Cable Television Public Affairs Association President's Award in recognition of Jones International's educational efforts through Mind Extension University. ME/U, now known as Knowledge TV, is the educational cable network that delivered college-level courses for credit in conjunction with more than twenty respected colleges and universities. In March 1991, Women in Cable and Telecommunications awarded Mr. Jones its first Cableforce 2000 Accolade in recognition of Jones Intercable's innovative employee programs. In April 1993, Mr. Jones received the Most Outstanding Corporate Individual Achievement Award from the International Distance Learning Conference (IDLCON) for his contributions to distance education. In September 1993, Mr. Jones received the Donald G. McGannon Award for the advancement of minorities and women in the media from the United Church of Christ Office of Communications. In June 1994, he was honored for his advances in distance education with the Golden Plate Award given by the American Academy of Achievement. In October 1994, the Denver chapter of the Achievement Rewards for College Scientists (ARCS) named Mr. Jones its "Man of the Year," and in November 1994, Mr. Jones was inducted into the Broadcasting and Cable Hall of Fame.

Mr. Jones is the author of the Jones Cable Television and Information Infrastructure Dictionary, Make All America a School, Cyberschools: An Education Renaissance (2 editions, published in English, Spanish, and Chinese), and Free Market Fusion: How entrepreneurs and nonprofits create 21st century success (1999), as well as several volumes of poetry.

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