Now don't get me wrong, I am very reluctant to criticize a volunteer organization like the ICA. However, I hear comments from players complaining that the ICA does not provide them value for membership, I have heard the same from the scholastic crowd, and also from the organizers. Can this be fixed? I think so, here is what I would do if I was the ICA president.
- Bring back the printed ICB, sure it costs more, but it is the only thing that members have for their money.
- Institute programs to promote chess, events like scholastic clinics, free ICA tournaments, publicize teachers, and events.
- Provide services and try to repair some of the scholastic rifts that have formed.
- Try to form a US Chess league team.
- Try to bring more national events to IL.
Tomorrow I will go more in depth as to how this could be done.
Glenn
4 comments:
Well, it is easy to make suggestions, but how to implement them? For chess culture to thrive here, it can't just be one aspect like master chess or scholastic, it must be all of them.
I would start by offering masters free entries into the IL Open and IL Class in exchange for teaching for free at an IL Scholastic event. The kids win, the masters win, and even the regular class players win by getting to see the masters in action at IL events.
The biggest thing that the ICA has going for it is quite a few great volunteers who want to see chess succeed. I would appoint volunteer coordinators and teams for each of the projects that I mentioned yesterday. Notice that I did not call them committees. I do not want it to be a beauracracy, rather small groups of volunteers able to make the decisions they need to in order to make thinks work and generate interest.
Glenn
Glenn,
The journey of a 1000 miles begins with but a single step..the steps you identify are the right one's but it will be a long journey...
Brad
The problem with both the print & the online ICB is quality of material.
glennpan,
May you be praised!
You are the coolest and best!
Of course, some would say in the present format that the discounts to ICA sponsored tournaments is what ICA members get for their membership.
For sure it wouldn't be a bad idea to provide a printed ICB. However, there is also the opportunity to provide for free ICB's at www.ilchess.org that are a few months old and require membership to access the most recent one.
Hmmm, it makes me wonder. It really makes me wonder.
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