WHEDco Chess Team shows off at SuperNationals!
At 3:30am on Thursday, May 11, seven sleepy students from our After School Enrichment Program at PS/MS 218 met up at their school with Program Director Jamie Yellen and Chess Coach Zak Dean. A bus would pick them up and transport them to the airport, where they’d embark on a trip to Nashville, TN in the wee hours of the morning. There was a mix of excitement and nervousness in the air, as the students prepared to face tough competition from all over the country during the United States Chess Federation’s Super Nationals VI Tournament.
“I’m excited to participate in Chess Nationals because I get to face other players from all over. I’m here not only to, hopefully, win a trophy, but also to have fun,” said an eager middle-schooler.
During the 3-day competition, every one of our players won at least 2 rounds, and Omar Verdejo won a 5th place individual trophy out of 400+ players! Overall, our team came away with a 10th place trophy out of 60 teams in the “K-8 Under 750” category.
Part of WHEDco’s After School programming and extended learning initiatives, chess and other arts engagement activities help students to develop critical thinking skills and social competencies, while promoting discipline and self-awareness.
Big congrats to our amazing chess players, Omar Verdejo (13), Dalving Guzman (13), Ella Calzada (13), Imtiaz Prodhania (13), Leiser Adon (11), Ismarlin Polanco (12), Ibriel Jimenez (12)!
And special thanks to ALTOUR and Delta for making this trip to Nashville possible!
To browse the full results of the competition, CLICK HERE!