In the realm of chess, the gender gap has long been a notable issue. Walk into any chess club or tournament, and you’ll likely see mostly male players, with only a sprinkling of females. This discrepancy can present a barrier for aspiring female chess enthusiasts as they may feel like the black sheep. Ergo, it can be hard to get girls involved in chess, because well… there aren’t that many girls in chess.
However, initiatives aimed at bridging this gap are gaining momentum. Among them stands the South Jersey Innovation Center (SJIC), a STEAM education center located in Cherry Hill, New Jersey. On Saturday, March 2nd, from 10am to 1pm, the SJIC hosted its 2nd Girls Chess Workshop. Led by Shyla Rana and Jasmine Declet, the workshop was run by girls for girls.
The workshop kicked off with a chess lesson. Since the participants were beginners at chess, they learned basic tournament etiquette–including how to notate.
A highlight of the workshop was the opportunity for the girls to apply their newfound knowledge in a tournament-style game of chess. Meaning, their games had to follow all of the rules of the tournament without actually being rated.
Afterwards, Benjamin Lauer, rated 2038, and Shyla Rana, rated 1705, both worked together to analyze all of the girl’s games.
The SJIC is happy to have been a place where girls interested in chess could come together and share their love for the game. It hopes to continue to do more workshops like this in the future.
A leading center for STEAM instruction (including math, creative design, and robotics), SJIC offers superb instructional chess programs for both children and adults. SJIC hosts official rated chess tournaments every other Sunday, community chess every Wednesday night, and chess club on Friday night.
