New to JQ but not JS: Why does this work in every browser EXCEPT IE??

New to JQ but not JS: Why does this work in every browser EXCEPT IE??

Hi,
I have a simple effect on a list where I display a div when the user hovers over a list item. Here's my JQ:
 
  1. $(document).ready(function() {
        var switches = $('#switches > li');
        var slides = $('#insideCenter > div');
        switches.each(function(idx) {
                $(this).data('slide', slides.eq(idx));
            }).hover(
            function() {
                switches.removeClass('active');
                slides.removeClass('active');            
                $(this).addClass('active'); 
                $(this).data('slide').addClass('active');
            });
        });












 
Pertinate CSS:
 
  1.   #centerMain ul li a.active {background-position:0 -25px;}
      #insideCenter div.active {display: block;}
      #item1 {display:none; margin:12px 50px 0px 15px;}
      #item2 {display:none; margin:12px 30px 0px 15px;}
      #item3 {display:none; margin:12px 30px 0px 15px;}




 
And markup snippet:
 
  1.      <ul id="switches">
          <li class="tools"><a name="item1" href="#item1" class="item1 active">Item 1</a></li>
          <li class="tools"><a name="item2" href="#item2" class="item2">Item 2</a></li>
          <li class="tools"><a name="item3" href="#item3" class="item3">Item 3</a></li>
         </ul>
         <div id="insideCenter">
          <div id="item1" class="active"><p>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet</p></div>
          <div id="item2"><p>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet</p></div>
          <div id="item3"><p>Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet</div>
         </div>









The effects work perfectly in FF, Safi, and Chrome, but not in IE 7-9! It you want to see the code in action, checkout my company's website.
 
This is my first foray into JQuery but I have lots of vanilla JS experience (although not for a couple of years now -- I'm out of shape). I am at a loss; I thought that one of the benefits of frameworks like JQuery is that it addresses much of the cross-browser issues!
 
Any help is greatly appreciated.
 
Thanks,
Vin