Jean L. Hoffman (born 1980) is a social entrepreneur, educator and long-time official in the non-profit community from Tucson, Arizona. Hoffman built and has led numerous chess-related non-profit organizations and worked to extend the benefits of chess to underserved and underrepresented communities throughout the United States. Hoffman served as the first female executive director of the United States Chess Federation from 2013-2017. [1]
Hoffman, born in Tucson, Arizona, attended the Gregory School from 1993 to 1999, later serving as a member of the board of trustees. In 1995 she led the three member team to win the United States National Chess Championship.[ citation needed ] Jean attended Yale University earning a bachelor's degree in History. Following her graduation she worked for the New York City nonprofit organization Chess in the Schools. In 2007, she earned a master's degree in Urban Education from Harvard University. [2]
In 2014 Hoffman assumed the role as the first female Executive Director of the US Chess Federation. During her tenure at US Chess until October 2017, chess in the United States experienced a resurgence [3] as evidenced by growing membership in US Chess, [4] record-breaking scholastic tournament participation including the hosting of the SuperNationals VI as the largest over-the-board chess tournament in history, [5] and the transfer of more players to the US than any other country [6] ultimately resulting in the United States winning the 2016 World Chess Olympiad for the first time in forty years. [7] In addition, Hoffman is also credited with leading the organization to achieve financial stability for the first time in several decades, spearheading a strategic rebranding and name change process to US Chess, and successfully transitioning from a 510(c)4 to a 501(c)3 organization. [4]
In 2008, Hoffman along with two-time US Women's Champion Jennifer Shahade co-founded the nonprofit organization 9 Queens dedicated to empowering women and at-risk youth through chess. [8] 9 Queens and its educational programing gained local, state and national attention appearing in articles in newspapers across the country including the New York Times [9] and NPR. [10]
Hoffman also served as general manager of the online communities Chesspark [11] and WuChess.com- the world's first and only online hip hop chess community founded by RZA from hip hop group the Wu-Tang Clan.
Irina Borisivna Krush is an American chess Grandmaster. She is the only woman to earn the GM title while playing for the United States. Krush is an eight-time U.S. Women's Champion.
Nona Gaprindashvili is a Georgian chess Grandmaster. She was the women's world chess champion from 1962 to 1978, and in 1978 she was the first woman ever to be awarded the FIDE title of Grandmaster. Noted for her aggressive play style, Gaprindashvili's has been recognized with entry into the World Chess Hall of Fame in 2013 and the Presidential Order of Excellence in 2015.
Vera Francevna Mencikova, was a Russian-born Czechoslovak chess player who primarily resided in England. She was the first and longest-reigning Women's World Chess Champion from 1927 to 1944, winning the championship eight times primarily in round-robin tournaments. In an era when women primarily competed against other women, Menchik was the first and only woman competing in master-level tournaments with the world's best players, and with some success.
Following are the results of the U.S. Women's Chess Championship from 1937 to date. The tournament determines the woman chess champion of the United States.
Jennifer Shahade is an American chess player, poker player, commentator and writer. She is a two-time United States Women's Champion and has the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster. Shahade is the author of the books Chess Bitch, Play Like a Girl, and most recently, Chess Queens, and co-author of Marcel Duchamp: The Art of Chess. From 2018 to 2023, she was the Women's Program Director at US Chess. She is also a MindSports Ambassador for PokerStars and a board member of the World Chess Hall of Fame in Saint Louis.
Anjelina Belakovskaia is an American chess player holding the FIDE title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM). She is a three-time U.S. women's champion, with victories in 1995, 1996, and 1999.
Tatev Abrahamyan is an Armenian-American chess player. She currently holds the title of Woman Grandmaster (WGM).
Alejandro Tadeo Ramírez Álvarez is a Costa Rican-American chess Grandmaster and commentator. At the age of 15, he became the first Central American to achieve the title of Grandmaster and was the second youngest chess grandmaster in the world at the time. Born in Costa Rica, he represented Costa Rica before switching to the United States in 2011.
Aleksander Wojtkiewicz was a Polish chess grandmaster. He was born in Latvia. In his early teens he was already a strong player; a student of ex-world champion Mikhail Tal whom he assisted in the 1979 Interzonal tournament in Riga. He won the Latvian Chess Championship in 1981. His promising chess career was interrupted when he refused to join the Soviet Army. For several years he went undercover but in 1986 he was sentenced to two years in prison. After one year he received an amnesty after the meeting of Presidents Ronald Reagan and Mikhail Gorbachev. Following his release he moved from Riga to Warsaw where he won two Polish Chess Championships. He played for Poland in the Chess Olympiads of 1990 and 1992.
The United States Chess League (USCL) was the only nationwide chess league in the United States for eleven years. In 2016 the League announced it would be opened to cities from around the world, moved to the website chess.com, and renamed the Professional Rapid Online Chess League.
Tucson Roller Derby (TRD) is a women's flat track roller derby league located in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in late 2003, Tucson Roller Derby is a skater-run non-profit organization and hosts monthly roller derby competitions showcasing bouts involving the various teams in the league, often against other leagues in Arizona, and also teams from national derby leagues. A founding member of the Women's Flat Track Derby Association (WFTDA), Tucson was the host league for the first WFTDA Championships in 2006.
Gregory Shahade is an International Master of chess. He founded the New York Masters and the U.S. Chess League. He is a former member of the executive board of the United States Chess Federation, to which his younger sister Jennifer Shahade was hired as the executive editor-in-chief of the website. Greg had a distinguished scholastic career, highlighted by three national chess championships: tying for first in the 1993 National Junior High School Championship and the 1996 National High School Championship, and winning the 1996 United States Junior Open outright. He was the leading scorer for Julia R. Masterman School in 1996, when they won their first of four National High School Chess Championships. He won the prestigious Samford Fellowship, awarded by the U.S. Chess Trust to the top U.S. prospect under the age of 25, in 1999. The fellowship granted Shahade approximately $25,000 to train for and play in top tournaments. He was also renewed for it in 2000 and subsequently scored his first Grandmaster norm at the Bermuda Closed in January 2001. Since 2006, he has held 30 sessions of the US Chess School, where the nation's top young chess talents are invited to train under the instruction of various Grandmasters. He was the founder and Commissioner of the U.S. Chess League, which folded in 2016.
Anna Hahn is a Latvian–American chess player with the title of Woman International Master (WIM).
Robert Lee Hess is an American chess player who received the FIDE title of Grandmaster (GM) in 2009. In May 2012, his FIDE rating was 2635, fifth in the United States. Hess is a commentator for Chess.com, covering events such as the World Chess Championship and Candidates Tournament. He also streams chess content on his Twitch channel GMHess, which has 73,000+ followers.
Phiona Mutesi is a Ugandan chess player. She has represented Uganda at four Women's Chess Olympiads, and is one of the first titled female players in Ugandan chess history. Mutesi is the subject of a 2012 book and a 2016 film called Queen of Katwe.
Daniel Rensch is an American chess player, International Master, event organizer, lecturer and commentator. He holds the Arizona state record for youngest national master, at the age of 14. He is the president of American Chess Events LLC and Chief Chess Officer of Chess.com.
The Tucson Girls Chorus is a girls' choir based in Tucson, Arizona. Founded in 1984, the non-profit organization accommodates girls aged 6 to 18 in six main choirs and numerous satellite choirs in low-income communities. Chorus members perform locally, nationally, and internationally. The chorus has released several CDs. In 2017, the organization opened the city's first public choir for girls and boys with special needs.
Jennifer Yu is an American chess player. She was awarded the title Woman Grandmaster by FIDE in 2018. Yu is a two-time U.S. women's champion, winning in 2019 and 2022.
Women represent a small minority of chess players at all ages and levels. Female chess players today generally compete in a mix of open tournaments and women's tournaments, the latter of which are most prominent at or near the top level of women's chess and at youth levels. Modern top-level women's tournaments help provide a means for some participants to be full-time professional chess players. The majority of these tournaments are organized by the International Chess Federation (FIDE) and revolve around the World Championship cycle, which culminates in a match to decide the Women's World Chess Champion. Beyond those events, among the most prominent women's tournaments are women's and girls' national and continental championships.
Emily Quynh Nguyen is an American chess player and a Woman International Master.