Polk Scholastic Chess (2022-2023 Season)
Dear Parents and Coaches,
Thank you all for your support at the Oct 15, 2022 tournament. Many of you might be wondering what the final results are, after the fourth game. We will have the announcement of winners (team and individual winners) in the morning session of the next tournament (Nov 5, 2022), at 8:15 am.
We hope to see you bright and early on that day - check-in all players starting from 7:30 am and latest by 8:15 am!!
We will plan to start the announcements by 8:15 am so that we can start the games faster. Like previous years, unless we have emergencies like the storms or hurricane, we will have four (4) games. We have tentatively planned to complete the tournament day (all four games) by tentatively 4:00 pm but will keep you updated via our Twitter feed. Lunch break will be approximately around 12:30 noon but may have to be slightly changed according to how your children play.
Once the general announcements are over, we will ask the parents to leave the hall so we can commence the games. Parents are not allowed inside the hall once the games begin, unless there is a medical necessity.
We encourage you to read the tournament manual for the rules and regulations (available on our website). We encourage all players to play with a clock so as to have a fair game. Please teach your players that games like chess not only help them in improving their logical, analytical and strategic skills on the academic side, but more importantly, experiences of wins and losses at such tournaments make them a better person overall. Teach them to shake hands gracefully after the game is over.
Important info for COACHES:
1. All of the tournaments will be Game 30. We will have four games on each tournament day.
2. Please ask your players to bring their chess boards and Black and White chess pieces.
3. Login to the Coaches Corner and ensure that all your players are registered accurately, with their PSC ratings if they have played in previous years. New players start with 100 points.
4. We now record the coaches' attendance at the front desk, so that it is easy for us to provide that to the School Board for the stipends for school board employees who are registered as coaches. Please ensure that your presence at the tournament is recorded by our front desk team.
5. Please complete and upload your paperwork on the Coaches Corner so we can submit it to the school board for processing on their systems. Please register online if you have not done so.
6. We encourage you to study our chess manual online, and explain the rules to the kids. Please remind your players that in order to qualify for this Championship tournament in March, a player must have competed in at least 12 of the possible 16 rounds, and if they have played at least the minimum games, they will qualify regardless of their score in the previous four tournaments.
Important info for PARENTS:
• CHESS BOARDS: Make sure your child brings a chess board (or the coaches can bring them from school). Kids lose their boards all the time, so I advise you to write the player's name on their personal boards.
• If you are bringing chess boards, please ensure that the pieces are BLACK and WHITE.
• Food: There may not be any options for food at the tournament site, as all food trucks are reported to be in Fort Myers area to help the hurricane impacted families. However, there are a few restaurants and fast-food places within 10 minutes' drive from the tournament venue. You can also have the food delivered to you by ordering online or bring from home. No on-site cooking with grills please. Please make sure you have snacks and drinks with you.
• Chairs: We encourage you to bring your own chairs, tables and canopies. We have limited seating available for parents and coaches. There are NO ASSIGNED ROOMS OR CHAIRS for coaches and parents - seating should be treated as First-come First-serve basis. Please respect players and adults who have disability or health situations.
• Weather: Please check the weather reports and have your kids dressed appropriately. Dress code as advised by Polk County School Board.
• Twitter: Sign up if you haven't already for our Twitter feeds @PolkChess for tournament announcements, rounds and updates.
• Safety: Please help us to keep the kids safe, by supervising them and also help keep the Civic Center property safe. Students that are not properly supervised by you (all day) will not be allowed to compete in PSC tournaments or rounds. In case of any Personal Safety issue, please contact the POLICE OFFICER on site or call 911 immediately.
No grills please - we do not want any accidents with any of the kids.
• NO SMOKING POLICY: Please help us maintain our tournament premises smoke free, alcohol free and drug free. We strongly need parent involvement to make this happen for our kids.
• Vendors: We might have a few vendors at our tournament. The vendors pay a fee so they can advertise at our tournaments and help us by keeping our registration fees low. We also have non-compete arrangement with them so no two vendors would compete for exactly same service or food on site. Please refrain from your business promotion activities unless you are registered with Polk Scholastic Chess. Contact us if you are interested in becoming a vendor at our tournaments.
Thank you for your continued support and participation.
Sincerely
Board Members
Polk Scholastic Chess
