Spartan Daily - Serving San Jose State University since 1934

I see that the fact that the college chess club did not receive funding for a trip to the Pan-Am event in Miami, is one aspect of not being recognized by the Collige bureaucracy in a timely fashion.

Being as the Pam-Am event is the premier college event in the nation. . . Many universities DO find funding in time to send representatives to it. Players from Stanford, Yale, Duke, Univ. of Toronto, New York Univ., Univ. of Texas, even the Univ. of the West Indies in Barbados, etc. often attend.

See the website www.bocachess.com/2007PanAm.htm

Perhaps it would he helpful to cite this so as to verify 1.) That this is a college activity deemed worth while by many universities . . . AND . . . 2.) Ask the college body responsible for the delayed recognition to answer why the hang up on being recognized as an official college club occurred. . . . ask for it in writing. 3.) Then ask for a financial settlement of 30-50% of the funding that was lost due to this. You will likely need to find out and contact the registered legal agent for the college yourself, and also find out what outfit carries the insurance policy on liability for the college. 4.) Just the publicity of the college administration fighting to withhold giving out that contact information will generate some publicity and help put the club on the "college map". The school newspaper might find an interest in this as part of the overall P.R. plan.

Thus -- You may be able to recover some significant portion of funding missed AND perhaps more important, send a message that "chess nerds" need to not be classified as 2nd class college citizens.

Indeed many studies (One website for these studies is at one of the official Boy Scouts of America sites at: www.scoutchess.org/dojo/8/v.jsp?p=/benefits ) have shown the benefit of chess to help students to be SELF motivated to plan and think ahead, developing the skills needed for academic achievement. Especially for students who are resistant to the usual prods to tackle their academic work!

Daren Dillinger - DDillinger@chessjournalism.org Member Pasadena City College Chess Club, 2003 -04, Past member of Board of Directors of Pasadena Chess Club, Vice president of the Chess Journalist of America 2003-2007. Current Vice president of the Florida Chess Assn. & para-legal.

Studies have shown that chess does provide for many students to be self motivated to plan and think ahead. The same studies also say chess helps develop the skills that help achieve academic excellence.

Even illegal drug use has its beginnings at an early age. Often those going down that path are not conditioned to look ahead to theconsequences of their actions. Not only for drug use directly, but the harmful dead end crimes of theft and murder, etc. -- that follow.