The current set of classes began on January 8 and finish on February 26. There are no classes on January 15 and February 19 due to holiday weekends. The offerings are the same as Nov - Dec, with one change. The Thursday evening Beginner class is continuing, but now is open to both kids and adults. The flyer with details is here: January - February 2012 classes.
The next set of Sunday classes will begin on March 11 and finish on April 19. Thursday evening Beginner classes start March 8. Monday evening Advanced classes start March 12. Evening classes are open to kids and adults. A flyer with details is here: March - April 2012 classes.
Upcoming Events:
January - March - 39th Annual Library tournaments - these are free, unrated events, held at various libraries through Western PA. 1st place winners are invited to a rated Finals tournament to compete against winners from other libraries. There is a Grade K - 4 and Grade 5 - 8 section at each library. You may only participate at 1 library. In order to register, you must go to the library of your choice and fill out the registration form. The current schedule is here: Library tournament schedule.
3/3/12 - 2012 Pittsburgh Scholastic Chess Championship at Oakland Catholic. The flyer is here: registration form.
Chess Photos: Have some free time? Check out our: Chess Photo Pages
The January 2012 ratings are online. If your child's school has changed, please email me with the update. Click here to view the list: Western PA Scholastic Chess Ratings List
NOTE: The USCF releases "official" rating updates on a monthly basis. However, there is still a time lag because each month's list is prepared about 2 weeks before the 1st of the month. If you play in an event the day after the cutoff date, you could still have a lag of up to 6 weeks before it impacts on your official rating.
Honor Roll list is updated quarterly. The latest list is here: Western PA Scholastic Chess Honor Roll.
The Honor Roll lists the name and school for the top 15 players in each grade. Students must be currently active and have
played at least 10 rated games. Students in grades K & 1 start the year with a lower requirement of only 4 rated games,
which is gradually increased to 10 as the school year progresses. Out of town players who have played in one of our
scholastic events during the past year are also eligible for the list. To learn more about chess ratings, click here:
Chess Ratings Explained
Past News & Assorted Items:
The 18th Annual Fox Chapel Chess Championship was held 1/28/12 at O'Hara Elementary. Top scorers were: Championship section: Alex Zhang, Intermediate section: Eric Zhang, Grades 3-12 Beginner: Brandon Wei, and Grades K-2 Beginner: Quentin Cook. O'Hara Elementary captured the team trophy. Full results are here: Full results.
The 13th Annual Catholic Schools Chess Championship was held 1/7/12 at St Louise de Marillac. First place winners were: Advanced section: Daniel Crawford, Intermediate: Mark Cicero, and Beginner: Scott Cicero. In the team competition, Central Catholic earned 1st place. Full results are here: Full results.
The 14th Tri-State Junior Open was held on 12/17/11 at CMU. 151 students participated. Scoring a major upset in the Championship section was Josh Gottlieb, who defeated players rated more than 200, 500, and 600 points above him! This was one of the biggest upsets victories we have seen in years. Other winners were: Premier: Gerry Chen, Intermediate: Isaac Mah, Grade 6-12 Beginner: Grace Mitro, Grade K-5 Advanced Beginner: Yiding Wang (a kindergartener!), Grade 3-5 Beginner: Andrew Johnson, and Grade K-2 Beginner: Jason Briegel. Full results are available here: Results.
The first tournament of the new school year was the 2011 Future Champions Chess Challenge held on 11/12/11 at the Pittsburgh Irish Center. 100 students participated. First place winners were: Championship section: Kyle Deddo, Premier section: Shane Fogarty, Intermediate section: Tim Ganger, Advanced Beginner: Justin Green, and Beginner: Jonah Hertzman. The Environmental Charter School won the team competition. Full results are available here: Results.
The Summer 2011 Chess Challenge took place on 8/20/11 at Pittsburgh Urban Christian School. First place winners were: Championship section: Jack Mo, Intermediate section: Andrew Casile, Advanced Beginner: Davis Smith, and Beginner: Luke Weiland. Pittsburgh Urban Christian School won the team competition for the second year running. Full results are available here: Results.
The 18th Annual Western PA Scholastic Chess Championship was held on 6/11/11 at Carnegie Mellon University. Jonathan Naser took top honors in the Championship section. Nathan Wang won the Premier section. Roy Wang was tops in the 650 - 949 section. Austin Kuntz topped the Grade 6 - 12 Beginners, Shane Fogarty won the Grade K - 5 Advanced Beginner, and Nate Fetting was champ of the Grade K - 5 Beginners. Top team was Colfax Elementary. Full results are available here: Results.
The 2011 Kings & Queens Chess Challenge was held on 5/7/11 at the Pittsburgh Irish Center. 1st place winners were: Championship: Byron Li, Premier: Christopher Rodes, Intermediate: MacKenzie Allen, Advanced Beginner: Austin Kuntz, and Beginner: Wylie Haddad. Full results here: Final results.
The 38th Annual Library Finals was held on 4/2/11 at Castle Shannon Library. Jack Mo won the Grade 5 - 8 division for the second year in a row. Maxim Yaskolko won the Grade K - 4 division. A photo report is online here: 2011 Library Finals Photo report. Full round by round results here: Final results.
The 2011 Pittsburgh Scholastic Chess Championship was held on 3/12/11 at Oakland Catholic High School. The new scholastic City Champion is Ben Molin, winner of the championship section. Other 1st place winners include: Premier: Nathan Wang, Intermediate: Michael Mi, Advanced Beginner: Raj Thimmiah, Beginner: Matt Robinson. Top team was Central Catholic High School. Full results can be viewed here: City Championship results.
The 17th Annual Fox Chapel Championship was held on 1/29/11 at O'Hara Elementary School. Winners of the individual competition were: Championship section: Jeffrey Uselman, Intermediate section: Steven Cano, and Beginner section: Myles Winston. Fairview Elementary snagged the team championship title for the 2nd year in a row. Full results here: Results for 17th Fox Chapel Championship.
The 12th Annual Catholic Schools Championship was held at Oakland Catholic High School on 1/15/11. First place winners were: Advanced section: Daniel Seamans, Intermediate section: Michael Niggemyer, and Beginner section: Henry Adrian. Top team was Notre Dame High School, from West Virginia. Congratulations to them, and all the participants! Full results are here: Results for Catholic Schools Championship.
The 13th Tri-State Junior Chess Championship took place at Carnegie Mellon University on 12/11/10. First place winners were: Championship: Roman Cano, Premier: Andrew Warburton, 775-949: Addison Lynch, 600-774: Tarush Bahl, 6-12 Beginner: Josiah Degraaf, K-5 Adv Beginner: Joseph Feffer, Grade 4-5 Beginner: Daniel Degraaf, and Grade K-3 Beginner: Jonah Murray. Top team was the Homeschool Elementary team. Full results here: Final results . Here is a picture of the Championship section from the last round, with Jonathan Botek vs Roman Cano on Board 1:
The 16th Annual Fox Chapel Chess Championship was played on 1/30/10. This tournament was only open to schools in the Fox Chapel area. 45 players participated. Fairview Elementary Elementary delivered a powerful performance to snatch the coveted team championship with 14 out of 16 possible points. First place finishers were: Roman Cano (Championship), Julia Lynch (Intermediate), Zachary Creinin (Grade 3-5 Beginner), and Justin Choo (Grade K - 2 Beginner). Congratulations to them, the other prize winners, and all the participants. For the full results, click here: 16th Annual Fox Chapel Championship Results.
Here is a picture of the winning Fairview team:
The 11th Annual Catholic Schools Chess Championship was held 12/19/09 at St Louise de Marillac. First place winners were: Advanced section: Michael El-Kadi, Grades 5-12 Beginner: Antonio Watkins & Anthony Kuntz (tied with 4-0), Grades 3-4 Beginner: Nicholas Minshall, and Grades K-2 Beginner: Matthew DiMarsico. In the team competition, Providence Heights Alpha earned 1st place for the 4th year in a row! Full results are here: Full results. Here is a photo of the Alpha team:
The 16th Annual Western PA Scholastic Championship took place at CMU on 6/13/09. 184 players participated. Five time US Champion and famous author Grandmaster Larry Evans entertained and instructed the players between rounds. That evening, he also gave a simul at the Pittsburgh Club Chess against several of the top Scholastic players in the area and several adult players. At the tournament, winners of the various sections were: Daniel Priore (Championship), Byron Li (Premier), Karthik Narayanan (850-999), Jonathan Wang (650-849), Joseph Wang (450-649), Jordan Keitel (6-12 Beg), Victoria Mbogo (Grades 4-5 Beg), Nivetta Thamilarasan (Grades 2-3 Beg), and Prathiksha Sivakumar (Grades K-1 Beg). Marshall Elementary took 1st place honors in the team championship on tiebreaks over Providence Heights Alpha. Full results can be viewed here: Final results.
Memorable Moments from the Past
The 2008 Future Champion's Chess Challenge was held 10/25/08 at Allderdice High School. Top team was Community Day School. Here is a photo of the Community Day School team:
The 15th Annual Western PA Scholastic Championship was held 6/14/08 at CMU. Here are some photos:
The Pittsburgh Youth Chess Dragons at the 2006 PA State Championship:
The Pittsburgh Youth Chess Dragons triumph at the PA State Chess Championship in Carlisle! We have won
1st place Club Team trophy in the K-3 Open for 5 years in a row! We also took 1st place Club team in the K-6 Open,
K-6 Under 800, and K-9 Under 1000. We were tied for 1st in the K-12 Under 1300, but finished 2nd in that section
on tiebreaks. The Pittsburgh Youth Chess Dragons are teams put together by Jerry Meyers, composed
of students from his various classes.
The 2003 Tri-State Junior Open, with 379 participants, was the largest local tournament ever held in
Western PA!! Here's how the main playing room looked at the start of the 1st round:
1) History
2) Academic Benefits
Focusing - Children are taught the benefits of observing carefully and concentrating. If they don’t watch what is
happening, they can’t respond to it, no matter how smart they are.
None of these skills are specific to chess, but they are all part of the game. The beauty of chess as a teaching tool is that it
stimulates children’s minds and helps them to build these skills while enjoying themselves. As a result, children become
more critical thinkers, better problem solvers, and more independent decision makers.
3) Educational Research
4) Social Benefits
Grace Dorohovich, 2007 Grade 6-12 City Champion, and Ben Molin, 2007 Grade K-5 City Champion!
Happy Dragons from K-3 Open & K-6 Under 800, and Randall Gough, 2005 PA Elementary Champion!
2005 K-6 Open Club Champions!
In past years, we were able to bring a number of special guests to Pittsburgh. One memorable visitor was Gregory Kaidanov,
who was the highest rated player in the US when he visited. To see more photos of Grandmaster Kaidanov and our other special
guest, click here: Annual Guest Speaker Program
Grandmaster Kaidanov's blindfold game against Gabriel Petesch was a highlight of his visit
Chess is a classic game of strategy, invented more than 1500 years ago in India. Legend has it that the ruler of India asked
his wise men to devise a way to teach the children of the royal family to become better thinkers and better generals on the
battlefield. Chess was the result. In the centuries since its invention, chess has spread to every country in the world. While
countless other games have died out, chess lives on. In the United States, it has received endorsements by many educators,
ranging from Benjamin Franklin to former U.S. Secretary of Education, Terrell Bell. In Western Pennsylvania, more than 70
schools and a dozen libraries offer chess programs, reaching several thousand students each year.
We have brought chess to the schools because we believe it directly contributes to academic performance. Chess makes
kids smarter. It does so by teaching the following skills:
Visualizing - Children are prompted to imagine a sequence of actions before it happens. We actually strengthen the
ability to visualize by training them to shift the pieces in their mind, first one, then several moves ahead.
Thinking Ahead - Children are taught to think first, then act. We teach them to ask themselves “If I do this, what
might happen then, and how can I respond?” Over time, chess helps develop patience and thoughtfulness.
Weighing Options - Children are taught that they don’t have to do the first thing that pops into their mind. They
learn to identify alternatives and consider the pros and cons of various actions.
Analyzing Concretely - Children learn to evaluate the results of specific actions and sequences. Does this
sequence help me or hurt me? Decisions are better when guided by logic, rather than impulse.
Thinking Abstractly - Children are taught to step back periodically from details and consider the bigger picture.
They also learn to take patterns used in one context and apply them to different, but related situations.
Planning - Children are taught to develop longer range goals and take steps toward bringing them about. They
are also taught of the need to reevaluate their plans as new developments change the situation.
Juggling Multiple Considerations Simultaneously - Children are encouraged not to become overly absorbed
in any one consideration, but to try to weigh various factors all at once.
These conclusions have been backed up by educational research. Studies have been done in various locations around
the United States and Canada, showing that chess results in increased scores on standardized tests for both reading and
math. A study on a large scale chess program in New York City, which involved more than 100 schools and 3,000 children,
showed higher classroom grades in both English and Math for children involved in chess. Studies in Houston, Texas and
Bradford, Pennsylvania showed chess leads to higher scores on the Watson Glaser Critical Thinking Appraisal and the
Torrance Tests of Creative Thinking.
In the schools, chess often serves as a bridge, bringing together children of different ages, races and genders in an activity
they can all enjoy. Chess helps build individual friendships and also school spirit when children compete together as teams
against other schools. Chess also teaches children about sportsmanship - how to win graciously and not give up when
encountering defeat. For children with adjustment issues, there are many examples where chess has led to increased
motivation, improved behavior, better self-image, and even improved attendance. Chess provides a positive social outlet,
a wholesome recreational activity that can be easily learned and enjoyed at any age.
