YU Chess Club Eyes Creation of Regional League

Although never as popular as intramural basketball or a Thursday night Simpson's episode in Rubin, the Yeshiva University Chess Club has always maintained a lively presence on campus. Over the past year, visitors to the second floor Morg on Wednesday nights have been greeted by the endless clicking of the brand-new game clocks the club has purchased. More than twenty-five students congregate each week to test their skills against one another, and, recently, the club even sponsored a college-wide chess tournament with substantial cash prizes for the winners.

But it seems that chess fans will soon have even more reason to be excited. Last month, club president Joshua Rosman (YC '01) announced, that in addition to maintaining his duties as leader of the club, he has been busy forming a regional chess league whose inaugural season will begin this fall. The league - known as the Scholastic Chess Players Association, Inc. (SCPA) - will consist of more than a dozen tri-state schools, including Queens College and Columbia University, who will compete against each other throughout a regular season and playoffs for the title of league champion. Within a few years, Rosman says, the SCPA will expand beyond the tri-state area into other regions, and it will continue to grow until it is a nation-wide organization.

When questioned about the plausibility of his expansion plans, Rosman appeared unfazed. "Sure it's an ambitious plan," he replied, "but it is also realistic. As of now, only one organization offers an intercollegiate chess league, and the league is extremely weak. There is no strong organization which offers universities from different regions the opportunity to compete against one another in the game of chess; there is demand for such a service, and the SCPA will satisfy that need. With the resources we have, we are confident that we will be able to meet any challenges that might arise."

Indeed, Rosman has amassed an impressive group of supporters. In addition to the talented students who sit on the SCPA's board - Ovadya Aryeh (SSSB '01), Executive Vice President; Daniel Shor (YC '99), Technology Director; Moshe Mayefsky (YC '01), Research Supervisor; and David Shor (YC '01), Legal Liaison - Rosman has enlisted the legal services of Franklin Snitow, a prominent Queens attorney, who has helped the league incorporate and attain non-profit organization status. Rosman has also consulted with Jeff Kastner, an accomplished United States Chess Federation and World Chess Federation Life Master, who has agreed to be the association's official advisor. In addition, Rosman has contacted Allan Benjamin, a world renowned international tournament director, to act as tournament director this fall.

It remains unclear how the funds necessary for the SCPA's operation will be raised, but Rosman reports that Yeshiva University has expressed "serious interest" in sponsoring the league. Certainly, a national chess league organized by Yeshiva students would assist the administration in its recent effort to create a public image of the University as a top-notch academic institution. At this point, funding remains the critical issue, and if the University does not choose to contribute to this promising new enterprise, the SCPA will be forced to seek corporate sponsors.