EXTENDED to MAY 15: 2020 Scholar Chess Player Award Deadline Announced

March 30, 2020 Update: Due to the current COVID-19 situation in the United States, the co-chairs of the Scholastic Council have decided to extend the deadline for the application for the 2020 National Scholar Chess Player Award to May 15th. Please read on for full information on the award program, originally posted on December, 2019: If you are a high school junior or senior looking for scholarship money, read on! If you are a current US Chess member you are eligible to apply for a 2020 National Scholar Chess Player Award if you:

Played in at least 25 Regular-rated US Chess or FIDE games during calendar year 2019, games with a Time Control less than Game-30 delay-0 do not count toward the 25 game requirement.
Have shown outstanding achievement in academics and chess.
Completed at least one year of chess-related community service since you started the 9th Grade.
Can articulate in an essay (of 500 words or less) how your being selected as a 2020 Scholar Chess Player enables you to further your education, improve your chess, and continue contributing to the chess community for the next 5 years. of your life.

A total of five awards are available at $3,000.00 each for a total of $15,000.00 in scholarship money. Previous recipients of this award are not eligible. These scholarships, awarded annually by the U.S. Chess Trust, the National Scholastic Chess Foundation (NSCF), and US Chess, recognize and encourage outstanding high school students who promote a positive image of chess. A generous donation by Dewain and Susan Barber has made it possible to increase the amount of the awards for the year 2020. Applications should be submitted using the online form: https://goo.gl/forms/1wZDuVXRC29X6SQ72 Documents (.doc, .pdf and other usual extensions) can be attached to the applications via this form. A pdf version of this announcement is available for ease of use. Your completed application must include the following:

Submitted application form via https://goo.gl/forms/1wZDuVXRC29X6SQ72
Your uploaded high school transcripts showing all courses and grades.
Your SAT or ACT scores.
Evidence listed in the form or uploaded that you have played at least 25 US Chess or FIDE rated games during the 2019-20 academic year.
A list and brief description of your best chess accomplishments.
Examples of your chess-related community service since 9th grade or later.
A letter of recommendation from a teacher in a current or former school you have attended in 9th, 10th, 11th, or 12th grade.
A letter of recommendation from a Chess Coach or Tournament Director.
A letter of support from someone other than a parent or guardian, bearing witness to the nature, duration and impact of your chess-related community service. We also encourage you to submit newspaper articles or web-based stories as evidence.
Your essay uploaded in the application form of no more than 500 words describing how your being recognized as a Scholar Chess player would help you continue contributing to the greater US Chess community over the next 5 years of your life.
OPTIONAL: A recent color photograph of yourself, either a headshot or full-length.

Deadline for submitting the application form is [UPDATED and EXTENDED TO: MAY 15, 2020, 11:59 PST] Incomplete applications will not be reviewed by the selection committee. If you have any questions regarding this form, or if you need technical assistance in completing it, please write to Click here to show email address and place “2020 Scholar-Chess Player Award” in the subject line.