photo: Ryan Mihalyi
Jean Hoffman, a 30-year-old Tucson native who earned her Master’s degree in education at Harvard, is a teacher, a chess player, a community organizer and a co-founder of 9 Queens, whose mission is “providing chess instruction to those most in needs of the game’s benefits, especially girls and at-risk youth.”
The articulate and energetic Hoffman is an inspired chess spokesperson who claims, “Chess really needs an image makeover.” She and 9 Queens co-founder Jennifer Shahade (a 2-time U.S. Women’s Chess champ) have set out to do just that – change the view of chess as a male-dominated “sport” for eggheads.
The group’s 4th Annual Chess Fest is slated for Saturday, April 2, 2pm to 5 pm, at Hotel Congress, 311 E. Congress St. This year’s theme, “Through the Looking Glass,” is based on the Lewis Carroll book about Alice’s adventures after she’s entered the world behind the mirror and becomes a pawn in a “human chess game.”
The hotel’s parking lot will be transformed into a chessboard for people-sized chess pieces. Shahade will play the Red Queen in the chess match. She’ll also have copies of her new book, Play Like a Girl with 9 Queens on hand to sign and sell.
The organization was modeled after a nonprofit that Hoffman worked for after earning her undergrad degree at Yale. “After I got out of college, I started teaching for a New York City non-profit called Chess in the Schools,” a group that brings chess programs to financially strapped educational districts.
“When I came back to Tucson, I wanted to do the same type of work. Since there was nowhere really doing that with chess here, Jennifer and I decided we’d create something similar.”
“The benefits of chess are well-documented,” Hoffman continues. “Studies have shown that chess improves cognitive abilities in 2nd and 3rd graders, and it’s been proven to improve both math and reading scores.”
In the spirit of making chess accessible to everyone, Chess Fest will offer newcomers a chance to learn how to play by visiting the “chess passport stations,” where each playing piece is individually explained and demonstrated. “We try to break it down into its different components so that anyone – regardless of what you might think – can learn to play.”
Hotel Congress will be rolling out three new chess tables that will reside in the lobby permanently after Chess Fest. “Richard and Shana (Oseran, owners of Congress) have really helped foster this event since the beginning,” Hoffman says.
“The whole point is to expose chess to as many people as possible – especially those who otherwise wouldn’t be able to have access to it. It’s a game that’s just as engaging to females as it is to males, and it opens up new ways of learning for people that might not be successful in more traditional learning environments.”
All activities are free and open to the public. No pre-registration is necessary. Individuals wishing to participate in the game and dress up as a character can sign up at the event. For more information, visit 9Queens.org and/or email jhoffman@9queens.org.
