Chess Club

Chess Club fosters a welcoming environment for chess enthusiasts of all levels and invites new players into the game. We support our players in competitive tournaments and encourage improvement and learning for all members. In the past year, we've hosted weekly meetings with as many as 80 attendees at each meeting and organized six prized, competitive tournaments. We also teamed up with the local nonprofit chess organization The Queen’s Gambit and set up chess boards on campus to get more students into chess. In addition, over the past three years, we’ve hosted multiple social events including movie nights and painting the Fence. Finally, we sent 3-4 teams of 4 players each to the World Amateur Team East Tournament in Parsippany, NJ the past three years and won the Best College and Best Under 2100 Team.

Ever since the club’s inception in 2022, there has been a huge growth in interest and participation. Many students expressed interest in attending outside tournaments and having more organized events. The interest we received indicates that the chess community at CMU wants a space to thrive. We would like to continue this revitalization and grow the chess community even more.

Our fundraising goal is $5,000 to grow our current initiatives and introduce new projects. We would like to bring more teams this year to competitive tournaments like World Amateur Team East, and eventually send teams to the Pan-American Intercollegiate Chess Tournament. We also would like to expand our tournaments and social events by increasing the prize funds and food to encourage even more attendance. Some longer term goals include hosting professional chess players to teach lessons, and beginning an outreach program to encourage the growth of chess in local Pittsburgh schools.

Membership in this student organization and participation in its programs/activities are available to all students at the University, regardless of race, color, national origin, gender, or any other protected class.