Dear USCF Voter,
I write to announce my candidacy for the USCF Executive Board. In the fourteen years since my last service on the Policy Board (1978-1985), many of you have encouraged me to run again. Those suggestions have been very gratifying to me personally, but time and again I have demurred, saying simply that I had no new ideas to contribute. For that is how I see these elections: they provide an open forum for the discussion of ideas that could benefit chess. Ideas, not personalities.
Why am I running?
About a year ago, over lunch, another USCF Voter urged me to run for the Board, and once again I made my usual response -- I don't have any new ideas. Mike Cavallo was with us at that lunch and he responded quickly: "Actually, that's not true. There's college chess." I had to admit that Mike was right. As many of you know, over the past several years I have been working to promote the development of college chess. I've had some success at my university, the University of Texas at Dallas, in convincing the administration to provide academic and competitive scholarships to chess players. I am fortunate to be teaching at a university with an enlightened central administration. And USCF administration has been very receptive to my suggestions of a college team discount and an Internet National College Chess League. The current Board, particularly President Don Schultz, college liaison Garrett Scott, and Treasurer Tom Dorsch, as well as the New Windsor staff, particularly Executive Director Mike Cavallo, Assistant Directors Beatriz Marinello and Ernie Schlich, and Chess Life Editor Glenn Peterson, have all been supportive of my ideas for the promotion of college chess. But I am enough of an old hand (a member of the "La Caissa Nostra" as one wit has put it) to know that if these efforts are to thrive, a Board advocate who is directly involved in their design and implementation is needed. I think there are other areas where I can contribute as well. So I'm running for the Board in '99.
My background and experience in brief.
I have served chess as the president of the Illinois Chess Association (twice) and the Ohio Chess Association (once). I was USCF Vice-President (on the Sperling Board, 1978-1981), USCF President (1981-1984), and Immediate Past President (on the Doyle Board, 1984-1985). I have chaired the Nominations Committee, the Rules Committee, and the Ethics Committee, and I am currently chair of the College Chess Committee. I have been a part of the Federation's delegation at four meetings of the FIDE General Assembly. With the help of Gerry Dullea, I edited the 3rd edition of the Official Rules of Chess (1987). I am an award-winning journalist and a member of the Chess Journalists of America. Thus I will bring to the Executive Board expertise in the areas of publishing, FIDE, USCF Rules, and an historical perspective that will help the Federation during the current difficult period. I should add that there is another reason for my running. At a difficult period in my life, chess provided a great refuge and solace. Whatever service I can offer to chess comes from an ever lively sense of gratitude for what it gave me then. I am also a player, and was briefly among the top twenty-five junior players in the country. I still love tournament chess though I don't seem to do very well at it anymore.
Professionally, I am a tenured full professor of literary studies at the University of Texas at Dallas, a Category I Doctoral Institution that serves as the public honors university of Texas. I have a second career as an author, and am currently finishing a biography of the American poet Ezra Pound. The book is under contract with Henry Holt, Inc. which has provided a $50,000 advance. I have a New York agent, I am an active member of PEN (the international association of professional writers), and I occasionally review biography for The Dallas Morning News. I have been able to use my professional skills and background for the promotion of chess and in the area of chess and education.
The current USCF financial crisis.
Late last Fall, USCF Treasurer Tom Dorsch called the attention of Board colleagues to an alarming operational deficit. Several of them refused to heed the warning, but Tom continued to insist that his figures were correct. Last February in New Jersey at the U.S. Amateur Team East three members of the current Executive Board (Dorsch, Eade, Lieberman) convened an emergency meeting to address the current USCF financial crisis. I was scheduled to attend, but a sickout by the American Airlines Pilots' Union forced me to change plans: more than one thousand flights, including my own, were canceled. Many Federation leaders, including Mike Cavallo, attended the financial workshop that weekend. The Board meeting never materialized due to a lack of a quorum. The USCF President, though at the hotel, would not attend, and two other Board Members, Vice President Bill Goichberg and Member-at-Large Garrett Scott did not come in for the meeting. A workshop was held instead.
I have received several different accounts of that workshop, including useful reports by Jim Pechac and Leroy Dubeck. Although predictions about how the Federation will finish this fiscal year vary, the consensus among many of our financial experts (Mike Carr, Tony Cottell, Steve Doyle, Dubeck, Dorsch, and Pechac) is that our situation is difficult. Dorsch's predictions have proven correct. At this point, based on the most recent (March) figures, it appears that we are heading for approximately a $160,000-170,000 operational loss this year. After adjustments needed for a bad debt are made by our accountants, the loss may total as much as $200,000.
A single bad year like that can be absorbed by an operation the size of the Federation. What is more disturbing to me is the marked increase in USCF indebtedness that has occurred in the past two years. We borrowed $175,000 last fiscal year to replenish inventory and cover operational losses. This year we have a $450,000 note coming due to cover a greater operational loss. The note must be paid down entirely to retain the favorable rate of interest, which would mean taking money temporarily out of Life Member Assets or negotiating a higher rate of interest with the bank. There is an additional $75,000 due to the bank on a note that covered the upgrade of our computer system as well as another $15,000 still owed to the system vendor. There is evidence to suggest that some vendor payments are being delayed by the USCF due to cash flow concerns. This trend -- increasing indebtedness to cover operational losses -- must be stopped immediately.
On the Positive Side
There is an old saying in economics, "genius is a rising market." A rising market and hefty profits create the impression of great capability and insight on the part of management. They also underwrite and conceal a lot of mistakes and transaction costs. The corollary to that old saying might be "folly is a falling market." When economic times are tough, an illusion is created of mismanagement and error while positive operational accomplishments are often overlooked. In the heat of the current political campaign, it is important not to fall into the blame game. We need to adopt a more nuanced approach not only as we assess what problems exist and how we can fix them, but also as we recognize the positive accomplishments of the current administration.
I have a friend in Italy, Paolo Ameglio, who owns a seventeenth-century villa in the hills overlooking the ancient port of Genova. I have stayed with his family many times over the past thirty years. Every hundred years or so the terra cotta roof needs to be replaced (they are very durable). A few years ago Paolo was bemoaning the fact that it was his bad luck to own the family property at a time when the roof needed fixing. It cost him $250,000 since according to Italian law historic buildings must be restored using historically accurate materials and techniques.
The current administration took over at a time when the roof needed fixing, both literally and metaphorically. Inventory and infrastructure badly needed upgrading. The roof, phone system, and computer system were all showing their age. USCF catalog inventory (books and equipment) was overvalued, outdated, and not selling. To give just a single, personal example: at the U.S. Open in Alexandria, Virginia in 1996 I couldn't find a single thing I wanted to buy in the USCF concession room. For the first time in my life I left a chess store without buying a thing. Last month at the National Open in Las Vegas, I spent more than $150: inventory has definitely been upgraded and chess expertise has been brought to bear on our merchandise selections. During a time of low interest rates, inventory improvement was a wise management choice.
I am not terribly worried by the money spent on the new computer system and other infrastructure upgrades or repairs. That money represents a necessary investment in operational efficiency. Further, we need to replenish and update inventory to maintain a competitive operation. In the days of amazon.com if an item is not available we may permanently lose a customer. But we simply cannot continue to borrow money to fund operations.
Immediate needs.
We need to get an accurate reading of our current situation. At the May Executive Board meeting in New Windsor, which I will attend, the budget for the next fiscal year will be presented. In the past few years, budgets have been overly optimistic. Helen Warren recently told of a Policy Board meeting at which revenue figures were increased irresponsibly. I was present at that same meeting with Helen (Somerset, New Jersey, May 1995) where the revenue side of the budget was unabashedly and openly overestimated. We must stop indulging in wishful thinking. Mike Cavallo has done a good job at keeping expenses down, but revenues are also down, due in part to market factors, as Myron Lieberman has shown in a recent, influential memo. The Internet Chess Club is now the venue of choice for many players, and people can find attractive prices for books and equipment at such locations as the World Wide Web Chess Superstore. We will need to adopt an austerity budget for '99-'00. The fairest way to achieve this goal is not by singling out one or two programs to cut entirely, but by sharing the pain by percentage reductions across the board. Candidates in the current election who do not admit the need for expense reduction are either naive or disingenuous. Pie-in-the-sky thinking must stop now.
Herman Drenth proposed the creation of a USCF Finance Task Force at the workshop in New Jersey. The Board appointed Leroy Dubeck as Chair, with members Mike Carr, Lee LaFrese, and Fred Townsend. Responding to the urgency of the current situation, the Dubeck Task Force has completed its work in record time and submitted its recommendations to the Board. Its suggestions have focused on enhancing revenues and will take time to implement. Among other things the report stresses the need for an in-house web site and web master both for play and sales, an online rating system, an online membership option, and online catalogs and publications. It also suggests that the Federation take advantage of our competitive advantage -- expertise -- and publish its own line of chess books. These ideas are welcome and I will discuss them in more detail below and in forthcoming mailings. But in addition to adjusting to the new market climate and new technology, I wish to consider the larger question of promoting chess, what has worked for us and what hasn't.
Promoting chess: an historical overview.
Unlike Signore Ameglio in Genova, we do not have to fix things using old methods and materials. We can innovate. At the same time we can learn from what has worked in the past as we plan for our future. What follows is a summary of proven ideas for the promotion of chess.
Phase one: ratings and regulation.
In my lifetime, the U.S. Chess Federation has passed through four major phases of growth and development. The first phase after our founding (in 1939) saw the invention by Kenneth Harkness of the USCF rating system (later made mathematically rigorous by Arpad Elo). The Harkness list was first published in 1950. Players in the early 'fifties were eager to join the USCF just to get a rating. For the first time, valid and reliable comparisons of playing strength were made possible among players across the country without the need for time-consuming regional and national round robins. The concomitant introduction of the Swiss system tournament, championed by George Koltanowski (the most successful chess promoter of the century), allowed larger numbers of players than before to compete in weekend tournaments. The Swiss system led to an aggressive American style of play, needed for success in the new tournaments. The cautious European style bred in round robins, though still necessary in international tournaments, produced too many draws, fatal in the fast-paced weekend Swiss.
Of course every strength can create a concomitant weakness. The rating system has been corrupted by the increase of class prizes to almost ridiculous dimensions. Human nature being what it is, sandbagging has become so common as to be almost an accepted practice within the chess community. Does anyone seriously believe any longer that a player who wins a multi-thousand dollar prize in a B section is really a B player? At the National Open last month in Las Vegas Mike Cavallo told me that the Unrated section was being called by some the "foreign expert" section. In an attempt to curb these abuses, the Federation has evolved an ever more elaborate system of rules and regulations to prevent them. I think that by and large this approach, meant to keep the great tournaments profitable for large organizers, has failed. Competitors no longer believe in the fairness of class prizes and legitimate class players are discouraged and no longer compete. No system of rules and regulations will ever keep up with the human ingenuity employed in circumventing them, so it is time to start deregulating USCF chess. Of course I do not want to prevent any organizer from offering large class prizes and developing rules to keep up at least the appearance of fairness. But an organizer who was willing to limit large class prizes only to players who had maintained a rating in that class for a period for three years or more after continuous play might be pleasantly surprised at how many class players returned to play at the prospect of honest competition.
The Federation has a legitimate, neutral function that works to our advantage: certifying and credentialing accurate ratings. A relatively disinterested group such as the USCF is necessary for chess competition, and we can take advantage of our historical position as that group. Chess expertise, unbiased oversight of competitions, and the maintenance of a valid and reliable rating system remain key strengths of our national organization.
Phase two: the local or national hero.
The second phase, the one that most of us remember, was the Fischer phenomenon. Careful international cultivation and support by USCF leaders such as Dubeck, Edmondson, and Skoff led to the historic 1972 world championship match and the Fischer boom. The Federation took calculated advantage of cold war tensions and individual genius to achieve the greatest membership expansion in its history. Fischer's triumph also led to international acceptance of the Elo system which had mathematically predicted his astonishing victories despite widespread disbelief. The ratings-driven Swiss system was easily able to accommodate the huge influx of members.
Alas, this phase had its weakness too. Genius cannot be replicated and the kind of character that drives an individual to spectacular intellectual achievement through an obsessive focus on one activity can also drive the same individual away from that activity -- the psychological investment in success is so great that the psychological risks of failure become unacceptable to the ego. So the Fischer boom led to the Fischer bust and USCF spending on the expectation of another Fischer match led to financial catastrophe. The principle behind the Fischer phenomenon is still valid -- the promotion of chess through a local or national hero -- but the other attractions of our society and the material rewards offered by other activities (such as becoming a physician, the career path chosen by Gatta Kamsky), lure many talented players away from the game. I still remember GM Jim Tarjan's eloquent speech to the USCF Delegates in Phoenix in 1978. He described how he had been attracted to chess on the promise that one might make a decent living from the game during the Fischer boom years, only to find during the bust years that such was not the case. Jim is now a librarian. The USCF had not yet found a way to sufficiently reward chess artistry and excellence, though such a way was to come in the third phase.
Phase three: chess as a social good.
I place the beginning of the third phase in 1986 with the foundation of the chess- in-the-schools program in New York by Fan Adams and Bruce Pandolfini. Certainly there were scholastic tournaments before then, most notably Bill Goichberg's important national program of USCF-rated scholastic events during the 'sixties and 'seventies. But the change that came in 1986 represented a different approach in this country -- the systematic cultivation of chess as a social good -- that has gradually gained acceptance, notably in New York, but also in other areas (I am most familiar with the innovative Warren program in Illinois and the Dallas-Area-Chess-In-Schools program -- a now- independent outgrowth of the New York Program -- for which I serve as board member and educational advisor.).
Of course the educational benefits of chess have been recognized internationally for some time. I gave a paper ("Chess as Education: Character Assassination or Life of the Mind?") summarizing some of those studies back in the 'seventies at the Lincoln, Nebraska National Endowment for the Humanities Conference on Chess. Dr. Robert Ferguson has contributed a great deal to disseminating these positive results by keeping an up-to-date chess and education research summary available to anyone interested. The explosion of anecdotal evidence and rigorous research (most notably the Margolies study) has convinced many people that chess can provide help for what ails us in this country, a solution as true for inner-city schools as it is for suburban talented and gifted programs. We are still in the midst of this exciting new popularization of chess which has benefited many USCF members by providing chess teaching jobs for masters and experts paid for by public entities and private foundations. This new approach offers potentially great benefit to the USCF. In this regard Rachel Lieberman's seemingly quixotic efforts to promote chess as a means of combating teen pregnancy prove to be right on track with a growing national trend. Phil Inness on the rec.games.chess.politics discussion group on the Internet eloquently called for the need for chess as a positive alternative to harmful activities. "It is not enough to `just say no,'" Phil posted. "We have to provide our youth with something they can say yes to. Chess does that." Chess offers the dual advantage of promoting intellectual growth, similar to but more durable than the so-called "Mozart effect," as well as developing increased self-esteem. I am proud to be a part of a most remarkable group of business people and educators, Dallas- Area-Chess-In-Schools, that is working to make chess happen in inner-city Dallas.
I don't see a downside to this phase, though chess purists might argue that it will alter the nature of the game. Perhaps if there is a downside it is that some chess instructors are fine players but aren't sufficiently prepared as teachers. Already the teaching approach to chess that is gaining acceptance de-emphasizes the competitive nature of the game and emphasizes its problem-solving aspect. Teachers will tell you that some children are put off by being forced into a win-lose contest though they can become very engaged with chess intellectually and benefit from it. I know that my godson (age six) likes to play chess but doesn't like the game to proceed to a victory or loss because he isn't comfortable with that aspect of the game. I think that chess in the future will be evolving in the multiple directions called for in Milan Vukcevic's brilliant keynote speech at the Hawaii U.S. Open and will embrace problemists, multi- dimensional chess, bughouse and other new forms of chess, and many other creative activities using chess as a base.
Wired versus tired.
The fourth phase of chess development in this country has been the introduction and growth of Internet chess. Unfortunately, despite frequent admonitions over the years from Myron Lieberman, despite the Barry board's direction to the New Windsor staff to implement an Internet chess presence, despite Bob Holliman's attempt to include a $100,000 item for the development of Internet chess at the 1996 Delegates' meeting (recently reiterated in a campaign mailing), the USCF has lagged behind both such cutting-edge software such as provided by the Internet Chess Club (ICC) and even such trailing-edge software provided by the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS). Just as the Swiss system drove out the round robin and the weekend Swiss drove out the club chess tournament, so now Internet play is driving out the weekend Swiss, the current foundation of USCF activity and success.
I should preface the following discussion with a disavowal. Although I started computer programming at my high school in the middle 'sixties (remember the bad old days of Fortran IV and punch cards anyone?), I am not a programmer or computer scientist. On the other hand, within my own field, I have published on the implications of hypertext and hypermedia, and I address these issues as a post-McCluhan scholar and critic who is very aware of the impact of various media upon human activity.
The Federation is making limited progress in adapting to the new technology. The new National Collegiate Chess League just finished its first season of Internet matches between universities and colleges using the ICC. The use of the Internet as a medium for play seems firmly in the hands of the ICC at this time, but with the near prospect of increasing speed and bandwidth, the Internet is about to make a quantum leap and we must be ready for the next jump. A recent issue of Scientific American (May 1999) called my attention to the development of a second-generation web language, extensible markup language (XML), completed early last year by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). Although it's too early to predict that XML will replace the currently standard HTML (Hypertext Markup Language), it is clear that something will, and that a necessary investment of USCF resources, as called for by the Dubeck Task Force, will put us back into the Internet game. Although I am reluctant to criticize the current administration, in this particular regard I believe that Tom Dorsch and Bob Holliman, as well as the Dubeck Task Force, are correct in pointing us again in the direction of a web presence.
Another approach to the use of the Internet in providing and promoting chess requires our immediate attention. That approach involves the use of the Internet as a broadcast medium. While still in its early stages, the new technology suggests a number of possibilities for Federation participation and growth. Let's call it the new connectivity. You don't need to be an engineer to see how the new compression technology, MP3, is changing the music industry, nor do you need to be a soothsayer to see where the new partnership between AT&T (telephone) and TCI (cable) will lead. With T-1 connections now increasingly common in universities and businesses, with "Internet 2" being subscribed to by most major research universities (including UT-Dallas), and with cable Internet connections already or soon available in such trial markets as my home city of Plano, we will soon inhabit a wired world. The fact that this world will be available only to the economically advantaged gives us an added incentive to make it also available in inner-city areas through chess-in-the-schools programs acting with corporate partners. A new commercial consortium headed by Bill Church is currently working to set up Internet matches between schools and to broadcast grandmaster competitions around the world via the Internet.
The Synergy Solution
Let's recap the four phases of successful chess promotion since 1950. First was the success of the rating system. The Federation acted to provide an accurate assessment of playing ability, acting as a guarantor of players' ratings as a true indicator of their strength. The success of the Swiss-system tournament led to another kind of certification, that of tournament directors. Before long I think we will be certifying chess coaches and chess teachers as well. Thus a legitimate task of the USCF is to act as a kind of accreditation agency, certifying the legitimacy of ratings, the fairness and knowledge of tournament directors, and the skill and preparation of teachers and coaches.
The second phase dramatically demonstrated the promotional potential in the success of a local or national hero. The USCF rating system predicted Fischer's success; Fischer's success validated the Elo system now used internationally. The same rating system can first identify local talent as players move up the competitive ranks; it can be used to legitimate claims of previous unknowns and allow them quicker entry into tournaments where they can prove their mettle. The winning home team or hometown hero will always attract the favorable media attention that helps promote chess.
The third phase of successful chess promotion involves the use of chess to promote a social good. Chess in prisons, chess for talented and gifted students, chess for economically disadvantaged children in inner cities, and the use of chess to combat teenage pregnancies, drug use, and after-school crime, all of these represent promising or proven uses of chess to address the many ills of contemporary society. These programs are starting to attract widespread attention and support while at the same time they allow many players to pursue their love of the game and its beauty while making a living at a chess-related activity.
The fourth phase will require that we adopt the new Internet medium. Inner-city schools can play Internet matches with suburban schools. The U.S. championship can be broadcast with commentary over the Internet. USCF-rated play through the adoption of an Internet membership or enhancement can give instant feedback through a constantly updated rating. The Internet can provide automatic tournament sections generated through an electronic organizer/tournament director, and even helpful automated advice when things go wrong tailored to the players' rating and linked to a purchase suggestion and automatic shipping. The hardware cost of an in-house server is not high. The software costs will be more extensive (I think Bob Holliman's estimate for both of $100,000 the first year is correct) but they can no longer be avoided.
All of these four methods for the promotion of chess have proven their worth and they will continue to be successful. For our future success, the Federation must focus on activities that combine two, three, or four of the above proven approaches. This is the synergy solution.
Other issues, other programs.
In future mailings I will expand upon these ideas. I will discuss some pressing issues facing the Federation at this time, in particular our role in FIDE, and USCF governance reform -- the issue of direct versus indirect election of the Executive Board. I will update you on the chess program at the University of Texas at Dallas and its partnership with Dallas-Area-Chess-In-Schools as well as on the increasing international attention given to chess and education and its future impact upon the Federation. I will also discuss the USCF's going into the publishing business (an idea proposed many years ago by erstwhile Chess Life Editor Burt Hochberg) and other revenue-enhancing ideas.
I am eager to hear from you about your concerns. I am most reliably reached by e-mail
The Federation has reached a crucial point in its history. We must position ourselves now for the new millennium. I believe this election to be the most important since 1978. You have and will receive mailings from many candidates. I am sure you will consider them carefully before you choose our future.
Cordially,
1965 joined the U.S. Chess Federation.
[1984-1998: Lecturer, University of Wisconsin-Parkside ('84-85).
1985 Served on Policy Board as immediate past president.
1995 Suggested chess program at UTD.
1996 First chess scholarships awarded at UTD. Since then we have awarded academic scholarships that take chess into account, chess teaching chess assistantships, and scholarships as prizes for the Texas High School Champion, the Texas Grade 12 Champion, the Dallas-Area-Chess-In-Schools Grade 6 Champion, and the top 11th grade student in the Denker Tournament of High School Champions.
1997 UTD placed second in Pan American Intercollegiate.
1998 Chair, ad hoc Committee to recommend the Executive Director's compensation to the Executive Board. Peter Dyson was the other committee member.
1999 UTD places first in the first-ever National College Chess League, played over the Internet on ICC.
[PHOTO]
Tim Redman standing with members of the 1997-1998 University of Texas at Dallas Chess Team (seated from left to right: Noureddine Ziane, Jason Doss, James Dean, Shivkumar Shivaji).
Tim Redman
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Chess (mostly) curriculum vitae for Tim Redman
1966 directed my first chess tournament.
1967 interim Executive Director, Chicago Chess Club.
interim Editor, Illinois Chess Bulletin.
1968 Illinois Junior Champion.
1969 Greater Chicago Junior Champion.
Among the top 25 players in the U.S. under the age of 21.
1970 Lived in Rome, Italy.
1971 Rome.
1972 Became a National Tournament Director.
Co-produced the TV show on the Fischer-Spassky match for
WTTW Channel 11
PBS station in Chicago. Guest host.
Elected Regional Vice-President, USCF (Midwest).
1973 Co-directed the record-breaking U.S. Open in Chicago.
Member, Pan-American Intercollegiate Championship
University of Chicago
team, Atlanta.
1974 Named an International Arbiter of FIDE
1975 Directed the U.S. Open and the U.S. Closed Championship.
Chair, USCF nominations committee.
1976 Lived in Rome.
1977 Rome.
1978 Elected Vice-President, USCF (three-year term).
Columnist ("Ask The Masters") Chess Life.
Columnist ("USCF Commentary") Illinois Chess Bulletin.
1979 Contributing Editor, Chess Life.
1980 President, Illinois Chess Association.
1981 Elected USCF President (three-year term).
1984 Chair, USCF Rules Committee.
President, Illinois Chess Association.
Instructor, Ohio State University-Lima Campus ('85-'87), Ph.D. in Comparative Literature, The University of Chicago ('87), Assistant Professor, Ohio State-Lima ('87-'89)]
Received USCF Distinguished Service Award.
1986 Represented the USCF at the FIDE Congress in Seville to revise
the rules of chess.
1987 Editor, The Rules of Chess, 3rd edition (New York: David
McKay, 1987).
1988 President, Ohio Chess Association.
1989 Moved to Dallas, Texas.
[Assistant Professor, School of Arts and Humanities, The University of Texas at Dallas ('89-'91), Ezra Pound and Italian Fascism (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1991), Associate Professor (tenured) (91-'98), Associate Dean and College Master, School of Arts and Humanities ('91-'92), full Professor ('98).]
Chair, USCF Ethics Committee.
Elected Chair, USCF College Committee.
Appointed to the Board of the USCF Charitable Trust.
Founding Director, Dallas-Area-Chess-In-Schools (John Jacobs, President).
Proposed discounted dues structure for college team members and formation of first National College Chess League over the Internet.
Re-elected Chair, USCF College Committee.
Chair, ad hoc Committee for Executive Director compensation (with Peter Dyson).
Candidate for the USCF Executive Board.
Here are links:
Contact address - please send e-mail to the following address: Sloan@ishipress.com