At its Jan. 27 board meeting, the ICA board approved revised qualifications for the Warren Junior Scholar program, which serves the state's top youth chess players.  Warren Scholars are chosen every February, and in the past it's been based on having attained a certain place in the national rankings during the prior year.  Under the new guidelines, students may now also qualify if they achieve certain minimum ratings during the prior year.  Players in high school now qualify for the program if they've achieved a minimum 1900 peak rating in the past 12 months; players younger than high school qualify if they've achieved a minimum 1700 peak rating in the past 12 months, and girls of any age qualify if they've achieved a minimum 1500 peak rating in the past 12 months.  For more specifics, see the ICA Warren Scholar page.

Players who qualify as 2011 Warren Scholars will be notified within the next week, and will be recognized during the awards ceremonies at the state high school team tournament in Peoria and the state K8 championship in Bloomington.