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hosted by Chess Queen™ & 12th Women's World Chess Champion Alexandra Kosteniuk
Monday, February 11, 2013
Cool Chess Stars from Brooklyn Castle Movie Walk the Red Carpet in LA
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Photo: Brian Schulz
Three stars of the highly acclaimed documentary, Brooklyn Castle, walked the red carpet last week at the 44th NAACP Image Awards in LA. Brooklyn Castle, the story of IS 318, the Championship chess team was nominated for the Best Documentary award. Pobo "Pobama" Efekoro, Rochelle Ballantyne and National Master Justus Williams flew from NY to LA for the star-studded ceremony, according to a nice report at the USCF website.
"To walk on the red carpet with Rochelle and Justus was exhilarating," Pobo said, "We were experiencing the the vibe of what it was like to be in Los Angeles, to be a movie star. And its something that the three of us will cherish."Meeting the rapper Common was a highlight. Rochelle, who aims to be the first female African-American chess master in history, said, "I respect him so much not only for his lyrics but for all he does in society." According to Pobo, upon introducing themselves, Common asked if they knew a guy named Maurice. "Our eyes lit up. 'You mean (Grandmaster) Maurice Ashley!?' He nodded. That was a very cool moment." Justus wore a tailored Kenneth Cole suit picked out by his grandmother and mom. Rochelle said her mom chose her gold dress. Originally Pobo wanted to look "extravagant" but "my mom along with my coworkers decided I should dress formally. I had a dark brand new suit and a gray, black, and blue striped tie. I think it worked out." Rochelle, who will be attending Stanford in the Fall, said: "LA is so beautiful, I feel like I was born to live in California."
Find more photos from the event at this USCF gallery and read all previous Chess Blog posts on Brooklyn Castle here.
Chess Blog for Daily Chess News and Trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2014
Hello everyone,
On April 26, 2014 from 12-3 pm, Hotel Congress will play host to 9 Queens 7th Annual Chess Fest, a community wide celebration, with special guest 19-year-old Rochelle Ballantyne. Featured in the inspirational documentary Brooklyn Castle, Rochelle sits on the verge of history as she becomes the first African-American female chess Master.
Your sponsorship will also allow 9 Queens to have an amazing simultaneous Chess exhibition with Rochelle Ballantyne against 25 players. Your contributions will ensure that everyone who wants to learn how to or just play chess will be able to by having enough staff, tables and chairs available.
"Rochelle is the perfect embodiment of what the 9 Queens Player of the Year Award is about. She represents an individual with incredible passion for the game and someone who has shared her talents with youth in her community. She serves as a fantastic role model for how hard work and dedication pay off, and can ultimately lead someone to achieving their dreams. -- Amanda Mateer Women's Fide Master and recipient of the 2013 9 Queens Player of the Year Award
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 9 Queens is a great organisation working to promote chess. They have set up a Kickstarter page for the 7th Annual Chess Fest Fundraiser! Pledge your support to make Chess Fest happen this year in Downtown Tucson at the Hotel Congress!
Did you know 9 Queens has been providing free educational chess programs since 2008?
Want to help? You can join other chess players from Pueblo, Catalina Foothills and Cholla High schools by volunteering your time at Chess Fest!
9 Queens anticipates attracting 1,000 chess enthusiasts from across Arizona for their annual fest!
9 Queens is a 501c3, nonprofit organization dedicated to empowerment through chess. Founded by Jennifer Shahade and Jean Hoffman in 2008, 9 Queens offers a range of free chess programs and workshops in Tucson, Arizona.
WHY ARE THEY CALLED 9 QUEENS? In chess, the queen is the most powerful piece on the board. Although every player begins the game with only one queen, every pawn has the potential to become a queen. In theory, it is possible to transform all 8 pawns into queens, thus creating a position in which there are 9 queens on the board. 9 Queens is a metaphor for the all too often unrealized capacity to empower all children through chess.
THEIR MISSION 9 Queens is dedicated to empowering individuals and communities through chess by making the game fun, exciting, and accessible. We offer free chess education programs specifically designed to promote critical thinking skills, academic performance, and self-confidence. Our mission is to use chess as a tool to motivate, empower, and engage under-served and under-represented populations to realize their potential and achieve academic and personal success.
12th Women's World Chess Champion Chess Queen™ Alexandra Kosteniuk was invited by 9 Queens in 2012 to hold a super chess simul. Read all about it at www.chessqueen.com. Of course, GM Kosteniuk is a great supporter of 9 Queens because of the wonderful work they do with chess!
Today I got an email from Katie Dellamaggiore, that I'd like to share with you. She's working on a chess movie, with an inspiring story about scholastic chess, which I liked very much. It stars the I.S. 318 chess team of Elizabeth Vicary in Brooklyn, New York. A true marvelous chess story that definitely deserves to be shared with the world!
My name is Katie Dellamaggiore and I'm an independent filmmaker from Brooklyn, New York. Over the last 2 years I have been producing and directing a documentary about scholastic chess with my company Rescued Media. Chess Movie (working title) goes inside one of the best junior high chess program in the nation, Intermediate School 318 in Brooklyn, New York. Many students at 318 come from difficult circumstances and 60% are from low-income families, but being part of a winning chess team gives them a unique opportunity to experience success at a young age. Justus, Patrick, Alexis, Pobo & Rochelle are 5 of 50 team members that are learning on the chessboard the skills they need to face challenges of adolescence and their working class circumstances. As a woman who has found such great success at chess I think you will particularly enjoy Rochelle's story because she dreams of one day becoming the first female African American grandmaster. A dream that is well within her reach!
In April 2009 we embarked on our first trip with Rochelle and her teammates to the USCF Super Nationals in Nashville, Tennessee. Once we witnessed how big the scholastic chess world was, we were hooked. Over the next year we embedded ourselves with the team-- at home, at school and away at tournaments -- and slowly, the kids' individual stories began to take shape. It’s our ultimate goal to secure a national television broadcast for Chess Movie on PBS and maybe even a small theatrical release. We also plan to build a strong community outreach campaign in the hopes the film will build support for scholastic chess programs in under served communities as we have witnessed firsthand the profound effect the I.S. 318 chess program has had on its students.
Right now we have a fundraising campaign underway at Kickstarter.com. Kickstarter is an online funding platform for artists to engage with their audiences and build support for their projects. Our Kickstarter campaign has been successful so far, reaching our initial goal of $4,000 in just a few short weeks. But we still have 40 days to go and we need more than 4k to finish this film. As independent filmmakers we are working hard to make this documentary on our own and hope to complete production in the next few months.
The original link to the 5-minute teaser is here, and the company's blog is here.
Rochelle Ballantyne: The African-American Chess Girl to Watch
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012
Hi everyone,
Steve Kastenbaum has done a nice interview for the CNN of the first African-American girl who is set to become a chess master. She is also the star of Brooklyn Castle. Here is the report along with the audio.
Rochelle Ballantyne plays chess the same way she walks through the streets of New York, determined to reach her goal without letting any obstacles slow her down.
The 17 year old from Brooklyn is just a few wins away from becoming the first female African-American to attain the ranking of chess master.
[:47] "I've never been the first anything so having that title next to my name is going to... it's going to feel amazing." Ballantyne grew up in a single parent home in the working class neighborhood of East Flatbush. She first learned to play chess from her grandmother, who didn't want that background to limit or prevent her from reaching her fullest potential. Ballantyne did not disappoint.
[2:47] "When I push myself, then nothing can stop me."
When it came time for middle school she wound up at I.S. 318, an inner-city public school that is home to the best chess team in the entire United States. Assistant Principal John Galvin oversees the chess program.
[4:53] "Rochelle was one of our best players that we've ever had in our school. She won several individual national championships."
Her time at the middle school is featured in Brooklyn Castle, a documentary about the chess team released earlier this week.
It's made her a rising star in the world of chess.
Brooklyn Castle Chess Star Rochelle Ballantyne Simul in Washington
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hi everyone,
The Council of the District of Columbia passed a resolution this month proclaiming April 18, 2013, to be “Chess in the Schools Day” in the District. Council member Tommy Wells presented a copy of the proclamation to U.S. Chess Center president David Mehler at a reception honoring Rochelle Ballantyne, the 17-year-old chess star from New York City who was featured in the documentary film Brooklyn Castle.
Rochelle Ballantyne meets with students at William E. Doar Jr. Public Charter School for the Performing Arts.
While in Washington, Ballantyne, played a 20-board simul against D.C. public school students at the Town Hall Education Arts and Recreation Center. She also met with students and educators at local schools to promote the benefits of learning chess. Her visit to the nation's capital was co-sponsored by the Washington Teachers' Union, whose president, USCF member Nathan Saunders, supports using chess as a tool to promote higher academic achievement.
Ballantyne is graduating this year from Brooklyn Tech High School this year and will attend Stanford University on a full scholarship in the fall. Her recent performance at Super Nationals puts her rating at just over 2100, pushing her closer to her goal of becoming the first African-American female master.
Ballantyne's appearance and the District Council's proclamation were part of a larger initiative by the U.S. Chess Center, a local nonprofit charity that teaches chess to at-risk children as a means of improving their academic and social skills. The Chess Center has initiated chess programs in more than 80 D.C. public schools and taught approximately 30,000 children the rules, strategy, and etiquette of the game since its founding in 1992. (Gavin Francis/USChess.org)
US Girls Junior Chess Championship 2014 in Manchester, NH July 17-21
Hello chess blog friends, mark your calendars for 17‐21 July 2014, University Center, University of New Hampshire Manchester! The University of New Hampshire at Manchester and Relyea Chess will host the first ever United States Girls Junior Closed Championship, July 17 through July 21. The US Girls Junior Closed Championship is a prestigious, nine‐round tournament that will have ten of the top‐rated girls (under age 20) in the United States. The winner will be recognized internationally as the US Girls Closed Champion by the United States Chess Federation, will receive a $2,000 cash prize and will be awarded a $10,000 scholarship to the University of New Hampshire.
In 1966, the United States Chess Federation started the Boys Closed Championship, which provides the winner a seat into the US Championship. This year, F. Alex Relyea, FIDE arbiter and Associate National Tournament Director based in Bedford, NH, decided that an equally prestigious event for girls should exist.
“There are some amazing young girls playing. We need to have the same prestigious titles for them that we have for boys.” He worked with the United States Federation to create and host the inaugural event in New Hampshire.
“The university is pleased to sponsor the first Closed Championship in the United States,” said Michael
America's Youngest Chess Master at 9, Carissa Yip. Photo: AP
Hickey, Interim Dean of UNH Manchester. “The game of chess is known to help develop problem‐solving skills, which is an important skill to learn, particularly for those interested in pursuing careers in STEM related disciplines. The university is committed to providing opportunities that encourage young women to develop their skills and interests in STEM areas.”
Chess is increasingly valued for its incredible educational impact. Globally, chess is recognized for improving problem‐solving skills, teaching self‐discipline, cultivating visualization skills, rewarding determination and perseverance and increasing interest in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) disciplines.
The first girls vying for the US Girls Closed Champion title exemplify this analytical, quiet determine.
Players include Maggie Feng, Apurva Virkud, Jennifer Yu, Akshita Gorti (ranked third highest girl under 12 worldwide), Becca Lampman, Claudia Munoz, Rochelle Ballatyne (appeared in 2012 documentary, Brooklyn Castle – highest ranked African American woman in the US), Carissa Yip (special wild‐card invitation as highest ranked girl in New England), Alice Dong, and Kimberly Ding.
NAME AGE TITLE RESIDENCE USCF Rating
Maggie Feng 14 Woman Candidate Master Ohio 2173
Apurva Virkud 16 Woman Candidate Master Virginia 2104
Kimberly Ding 15 Woman FIDE Master New Jersey 2091
Carissa Yip 10 Expert Massachusetts 2157
The opening ceremony will be at 8:00am on Thursday, July 17 in room 323 at the University of New Hampshire at Manchester campus, 400 Commercial Street, Manchester, NH. All games are free and open for public viewing. Spectators are invited to attend. Details can be found at www.relyeachess.com.
Relyea Chess is dedicated to bringing high quality, specialty chess tournaments to New England. For example, Relyea Chess hosted a first‐ever 26‐person round robin blitz tournament, directed the prestigious New England Open multiple times and organized a unique FIDE, invitational, round robin. Relyea Chess is a private organization affiliated with the United States Chess Federation.
Where's the best junior high school chess team in the nation? It's not at a private school or in some wealthy suburb. Instead, it’s at Brooklyn's Intermediate School 318, where the majority of students are low-income children of color. A new documentary called Brooklyn Castle follows members of the school's chess team for one year to show how the program has transformed the students and the entire school.
At I.S. 318, chess champions—not varsity athletes—are celebrities among their peers. The trailer above gives us a sneak peek at the incredible stories of the students on the team. Thirteen-year-old Rochelle, for example, is aiming to become the first black female chess master in the history of the game.
The film is a project of Rescued Media, a Brooklyn-based production company started by husband-wife filmmaking duo Katie and Nelson Dellamaggiore. The couple says that by featuring the five extraordinary teenagers, Brooklyn Castle serves as a "counterpoint to the tired notion that public schools—and public school students—can only fail." When budget cuts threatened to eliminate many of the I.S. 318’s most successful programs, including the chess program, the filmmakers decided to use the school's experience to represent that of countless schools where afterschool programs are on the chopping block despite boosting academic achievement and engagement.
In an effort to build national recognition of the I.S. 318 team and the challenges facing public schools, the Dellamaggiores are running aKickstarter campaign to raise $20,000 to hold screenings of Brooklyn Castle across the country. They're also organizing tournaments at which the I.S. 318 students will go head-to-head against chess players at Harvard, Columbia, and the Google campus "so the kids realize those places are within their reach, and word gets out that public schools across the country are suffering from the crushing effects of budget cuts." The fundraising campaign ends tomorrow, so if you're inspired by the stories of Rochelle and her classmates and want future I.S. 318 students to have the same opportunities, now's your chance to pitch in for the cause.
Black Chess Talent Rochelle Ballantyne Simul in Anacostia this Thursday
Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2013
Hi everyone,
Rochelle Ballantyne, a member of the famed Brooklyn Castle championship scholastic squad and the highest rated black female player in the United States, will conduct a 20-board simultaneous exhibition this Thursday at 4:30 p.m. at the THEARC in Anacostia, located at 1901 Mississippi Ave. SE. Ballantyne, 17, and headed to Stanford on a full scholarship next fall, is on track to becoming the country’s first female African-American chess master and has already won two U.S. Girls Championship age-group titles. The U.S. Chess Center and the Washington Teachers Union are co-sponsoring the event, which will be held on the first D.C. “Chess in the Schools Day.” Proceeds from the event will help fund the Chess Center’s activities. For more details, call the Center at 202/ 857-4922. From Alexandra Kosteniuk's www.chessblog.com Also see her personal blog at www.chessqueen.com Don't miss Chess Queen™ YouTube Channel
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Best chess wishes to you! Alexandra Kosteniuk
12th Women's World Chess Champion
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