Chess and Beyond

For Anthony Upsey, chess has been an important part of his life since he was a freshman at Bok High School. "Chess has taught me to think before I make decisions," said the North Philadelphia resident. "It has also kept me out of trouble after school."

KYW's Dr. Marciene Mattleman reports chess has taken Anthony to Lincoln Financial Field, where he received a trophy in the Eagles locker room at the annual Eagles Chess Tournament. He also received one of the first chess scholarship awards to Community College of Philadelphia.

All of this happened through his participation in the Philadelphia Youth Chess Challenge, in which more than 4,200 young people grades 1st -12th play chess weekly after school in public, parochial and charter schools, libraries, rec centers, churches and other community-based sites.

For girls who tend to drop out of chess in middle school, Philly Girls Play Chess has captured their interest and research shows that kids who play chess improve attendance, reading and math scores beyond those of their non chess playing classmates and they tend not to drop out. To learn more, contact wjordan@phillyasap.org.