Grandmasters Ask to Meet with Mayor and CPS

Four Illinois Grandmasters, the elite of the state's chess world, have requested a meeting with Mayor Rahm Emanuel and CPS CEO Barbara Byrd-Bennett to discuss a new chess plan for the city's public schools. The request was made in a letter dated September 18.

Chicago has approximately 1,500 scholastic players compared to 23,000 in New York. New York dominates national competitions rarely even attended by Chicago teams. ICA has been actively advocating a new program for nearly four years.

The GMs mentioned Chicago's recent award from the U. S. Chess Federation naming it "Chess City of the Year" and said they were ready to "help you make that title come true."

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Opportunity Lost: Chess in CPS

An editorial

Mayor Emanuel and the Chicago Public Schools frequently speak about the pursuit of excellence for our children. Their intentions are good, but bureaucracy, budget woes and special interests often get in the way. Chicago’s approach to scholastic chess is a telling example.

Chess is unquestionably one of the best tools for developing young minds and providing safe after-school alternatives.  New York City gets it.  They have 23,000 players in K-12.  Their kids dominate national tournaments.  Regardless of their socio-economic background, kids in New York City have access to chess.

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August 2013 Chess Roundup

If the reality of chess is too much to handle, a new movie "Computer Chess" just hit the silver screen. 

It seems chess prodigies keep getting younger and younger.   The youngest expert now goes to Carissa Yip from Chelmsford Massachusetts.

This month I've broken out some tournament highlights by continent.  As I expected, Antarctica was a no-show on the tournament boards.  I was surprised to not find results for Australia.  But here are some results from tournaments around the world.

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2013 Illinois Open

Aug 31 - Sept 2, 2013
Oakbrook, Illinois

$7000
b/150 paid entries: $$$ increase to maximum as attendance increases.

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Charles Swan Wins Isaac Braswell Memorial High School Chess Prize

Evanston Chess Club is pleased to award the first Isaac Braswell Memorial High School Chess Prize to Charles Swan of Chicago. Swan earned the prize by being the highest-rated African American senior year player in IHSA chess. He played board two for the Whitney Young High School chess team that won the 2013 IHSA championship, and he is also an active USCF player. Swan will receive a $300 award at the Second Annual Isaac Braswell Memorial Blitz Tournament, to be held at Evanston Chess Club on June 8.

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