The Cris Collinsworth ProScan Fund now looks ahead to its next annual event: The Queen City Classic Chess Tournament, set for March 15 and 16 at Paul Brown Stadium. With 700 K-12 students expected to participate and international grandmasters scheduled to appear, it is sure to be a memorable celebration of this game that is at the center of CCPF’s mission.
The growing popularity of the chess tournament unearthed the demand for a scholastic chess program in Cincinnati. CCPF launched the Chess in Schools Program in 2013 and today teaches the game to about 2,000 elementary, middle and high school students across Greater Cincinnati. Learning the game of chess, program founders and teachers note, helps cultivate concentration, critical thinking and sportsmanship skills that will serve students throughout their lives.
Children at St. Joseph Orphanage, a comprehensive behavioral health and educational treatment agency, have embraced CCPF’s Chess in Schools Program, says Peggy Rosa, case aide.
The agency, founded as an orphanage in 1829, now serves more than 4,300 children and families annually who are struggling with mental health and behavioral concerns in Hamilton, Butler, Clermont, Brown, Adams, Greene, Montgomery, Preble and Darke counties.
“I initially thought the program might not be suitable for the children we serve,” Rosa notes. “But we observed another class and saw how completely engaged the students were, how they loved participating, so we decided to give it a try.”
She describes what unfolded next as “pretty incredible.”
“Instructor Mike Donohue meets the kids where they are. He connects with them, so they feel safe sitting down and learning from him. Kids who have trouble focusing on every day tasks sit down to play chess and are very engaged. They can learn and play and win, and when the game is over, they stand up, shake hands and say, ‘Good game.’ It gives them a sense of achievement.”
CCPF has 15 chess instructors teaching around town. The program also provides the boards and pieces for the students, the teaching board for the instructor and a curriculum that each instructor follows.
“The benefits of the chess program are endless,” Rosa says.
Cris Collinsworth ProScan Fund is located at 5400 Kennedy Ave., Cincinnati, OH 45213. For more information, call 513.924.5487 or 1.866.PS-CHESS, email ccpfevents@proscan.com or visit www.ccpf.proscan.com