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Celebrate National Chess Day with BCS!!!  Community Chess Festival Sat, Oct 11th, 11 am - 5 pm!  Chess!  Food!  Fun!  We are also seeking donations of great items and delicious cakes for our Silent Auction, Raffle, and Cake Walk.  If you have an item or confection you would like to donate, please contact jennifer@berkeleychessschool.org.   [...]

In Memoriam  Alan Scott Glasscoe March 9th, 1943 – June 30th, 2025   Alan Glasscoe, longtime Director of the Berkeley Chess Club, former President of CalChess (1989) and a founding board member of the Berkeley Chess School, passed June 30th, 2025 in Oakland, CA, at the age of 82.  Please join us for a celebration [...]

  WIM Ruiyang Yan and WFM Natalie Tsodikova 2025 Calchess Women's Champions IM Timothy Taylor and NM Dmytro Dzhanhirov Calchess Senior Champions   It all came down to the last round! In the Northern California Senior State Championship, four players had a chance going into round 5. IM Elliott Winslow and [...]

Stephen Shaughnessy, aka Mr. Chess, at the BACR Vendor Fair last week. Many school districts have chosen BACR to provide after-school classes and activities for a flat rate. Students don't pay, all can participate! More Information here at https://www.bacr.org/. We offer chess through BACR; or schools can arrange classes with BCS directly. Find more [...]

Thanks to the generosity of American Chess Magazine, you can read about IM Josiah Stearman's exploits at the American Continental Chess Championship, where he rose from 31st seed to a place at the World Cup! Read the article here Magazine Article If you would like to order this issue (#34) or subscribe, visit American Chess [...]

Pre-register for the tournament here. EXPRESS REGISTRATION

Richard Russell Shorman, an incomparable stalwart of the Bay Area Chess Community, passed away at his home in Hayward, California on August 12, 2023. He was 84. At the age of 15, Richard began playing at the Oakland YMCA Chess Club, run by the legendary Grandmaster George Koltanowski. Initially frustrated by the pace of his [...]

And the Honors Keep Coming! BCS Founder and President Elizabeth Shaughnessy will be inducted into the Alameda County Women's Hall of Fame on Saturday, March 25th, at an awards ceremony and luncheon at the Greek Orthodox Cathedral in Oakland.  The Women's Hall of Fame recognizes outstanding women for their achievements and contributions to Alameda County [...]

Feb 16th we held our Monthly Quads in Berkeley with 32 participants Quad 1 was won by the top seed Tobias Stowell with a perfect 3/3 Best game was won by Yasmine Waharte. There is a famous trap in the Kings Gambit that goes 1)e4 e5 2)f4 Bc5 3)fxe5?? Qh5! and game over Black wins. [...]