The center runs chess tournaments and brings in high level chess players to speak to students. The Center is headquartered in Silver Spring, MD,[1] and its president is David Mehler, an attorney.[2]
Established in 1991,[3] the Center opened in July 1992. In 1993, the Center brought the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame and Museum to Washington, D.C., from New Windsor, NY. [4] In 1995 the Center published Macon Shibut's The U.S. Chess Hall of Fame.[5] In 2001, the hall of fame and museum moved from Washington, first to Florida and then to St. Louis, MO.
The Center was created to teach at-risk youth to play chess as a means of improving their academic and social skills.[6] The Center has created chess programs in more than 130 locations, mainly public schools, in Washington, D.C., and its surrounding suburbs. These programs included before- and after-school chess clubs as well as classes for students during the academic day.[7] More than 30,000 students have been in the Center's classes, completing at least one 15-week program.
The Center has hosted 11 national championship tournaments: It co-sponsored the U.S. Cadet Chess Championship (the official national championship for players under age 16) from 1993 through 1996[13][14][15][16] and sponsored the United States Armed Forces Chess Championship from 1994 through 2000.[17]
