September 10, 2008
From: Michael Martin, Chess Director
After School Chess Program to Launch September 22
Greetings everyone and welcome back to school. The 23rd year of the After School Chess program has been planned and will commence on Monday, September 22.
To get things started, we'll have a short, 20-minute Parent Information meeting inside the church at 3:10 until 3:30 pm that Monday. Students and their parents are encouraged to attend so you can find out all the skinny on the Chess program, meet me, and most importantly, Jack Peters, the International Master who is dedicating his time to our children. Jack also writes the Chess Column for the LA Times and has done so for 20 years. We are very fortunate to have a world-renown, world-class player at our disposal.
Boys and girls of all grade levels are encouraged to join this year. We have 3 skill levels available: Beginner, Intermediate, and Advanced. Neither age nor grade necessarily corresponds to skill level, so it's a great way to develop socializing skills. And I've seen that the older players really take their younger school mates under their wing and it is very sweet. Some of the other things we'll cover Monday, September 22 are:
Recruiting players from grades 5- 8.
Tournament participation
Playing in competitive Matches
Potential Scholarships to be awarded
Volunteering to oversee classrooms
The last bullet here is key. Chess Parents are mandated to contribute some of their time volunteering to maintain order during the lessons. Players are broken up into their skill level and occupy 3 classrooms. Jack travels between the 3 different classrooms and we need parents to keep order. Very easy to do, we just need your time. We effectively need 30 hours of volunteering this trimester. To put that into perspective, we need each parent to volunteer for one Monday from the hours of 3:15 to 4:30 pm. I will attend each Monday too. "We have jobs." "We work." are not excuses. The reason we can pull this off in such an affordable manner is thanks to your time.
Also, Sr. Stella and I are bringing back some SPA grads who are at Notre Dame and Loyola HS to help out - they can also get their Service Hours in.
I, myself am going on a fund raising spree (not from you nor the school) through my connections to fund the scholarships. They may not be much at first, but they will become substantial if I get it half-right.
Registration this year has gone Green and will be conducted via email after the meeting on the 22nd. It will be a simple 2-step process:
1) Parents will email the names of their child or children who wish to enroll, as well as their grade, age, and skill level to me at jv.24601@gmail.com. Please put Chess in the subject line. One of each player's parents will volunteer for one Monday (90 minutes).
2) Trimester fees are $75 and $200 for the entire year. Parents will mail the Sign-up Fee, including $30 per student Registration Fee, directly to the school via USPS with the word Chess in the memo section. As an alternative, we will have a box inside the front door at the school if you'd like to drop the fees off in person. There are no registration forms. These steps will save approximately 2,500 sheets of paper.
3) Last year's shirts may be worn. We will have new ones later this year. It is not mandatory for players to wear or buy SPA Chess shirts. The child's attendance is all that is needed - no one will be turned away.
4) Jack Peters determines the appropriate level of play for each student. Use your best judgment: if your child is beating everyone handily, he/she will be upgraded a level. Likewise, if your child is struggling, Jack will bring them down a level. The idea is to have fun and learn.
Registration Fees can be mailed to or dropped off at the school at:
St. Paul the Apostle
1536 Selby Avenue
Los Angeles, CA 90024
Attn: Chess Director
Please make your checks payable to St. Paul the Apostle Chess Club
Thanks for your support and involvement.
Respectfully,
Michael Martin
