The U.S. Chess Center is growing and would like chess players to learn our award-winning methods.
Part time teaching positions are available immediately that can turn into a full-time career with a salary and health insurance.
We’re looking for teachers!
Would you like to teach chess? Are you interested in learning the skills to teach a roomful of children to sit and concentrate on a game of chess for an hour? Does helping kids learn critical thinking skills, teaching them to distinguish good ideas from bad ones, excite you? At the U.S. Chess Center, we work in large suburban settings and in urban classrooms teaching children the rules, discipline, strategy, and etiquette of chess. We need more teachers for both our urban and suburban chess classes! Full time or after-school part-time positions are available.
Do you have what it takes to teach chess?
Successful chess teachers with the U.S. Chess Center will have prior experience with kids; enjoy playing chess; be fluent in English; have excellent communication skills; be dependable; and have a desire to learn and employ the methods we have used to help kids win more than 50 state and national championships. In return, you will learn to keep a roomful of children challenged and engaged in learning the rules, discipline, strategy, and etiquette of chess through critical thinking, not memorization. You will have the satisfaction of seeing the self-confidence that comes as students develop skills that will serve them in many contexts. And you will have a job that our former teachers have found life-changing.
Compensation
Money: Moderate
Satisfaction: Enormous
To apply, please send your résumé with a cover letter to admin@chessctr.org. See below for a description of our teaching position.
Our former teachers have found the experience life-changing
“If you love chess, as I do, there is no greater joy than the opportunity that the US Chess Center can give to share that. Teaching kids to think, and to learn a skill for life is exactly what is offered. It has been one of the greatest joys of my life, and has gone through me to many others. Why would you want to miss that experience?”
Greg Acholonu, Owner of GCA Children’s Chess LLC
“Working at the U.S. Chess Center builds skills for life — for teacher and student alike. Even though I am now working as an attorney on the other side of the Atlantic, I still find myself using the things I learned while exploring and communicating the beauty of the game to young curious minds. And judging by the successes that our former students have had, I am sure that the same can be said for them.”
Tunde Oyewole, Of Counsel, Orrick Herrington & Sutcliffe LLP
“I loved my experience as a teacher. I was a pretty green chess player, but the Chess Center taught me the game, how to teach, and I had the pleasure of working with wonderful children. It was probably the most rewarding work experience I’ve ever had.”
Eric Grynaviski, Associate Professor, George Washington University
“When I joined the Chess Center, my enthusiasm for chess far outpaced my understanding of the game. Thankfully, my new coworkers were more than willing to help me learn. Teaching chess was the most rewarding work I’ve ever done. And, once it was time for me to move on to my next step in life, management took a genuine interest in aiding me with grad school applications and references.”
Will Eager, Implementation Manager / Consultant
Our teaching positions are in-person, not online, in the national capital area (Washington, DC, and its adjacent suburbs in Maryland and Virginia).
Part-time teachers are taught how to manage large classes of students, most of them in elementary schools. Most classes are after-school and on Saturdays with some classes during the school day. Teachers must have personal transportation, as most schools are not easily accessible by public transportation. Our teachers are expected to use our methods and curriculum (that have earned the U.S. Chess Center many national awards) for chess instruction.
Teachers must be reliable and responsible. They must have the ability to communicate with children and parents, both orally and in writing. Teachers must pass background checks.
Teachers are compensated for time spent in class, as well as preparation and travel time. Financial compensation for part-time teachers ranges from $40 – $90 per class depending on the travel time involved. The satisfaction from teaching young people to play chess is enormous but harder to quantify.
Teachers start as part-time. We encourage them to become full-time and become eligible for health insurance benefits (medical, dental, and vision available). Full-time teachers receive generous paid vacation time.
CHESS TEACHER
- Responsible for teaching chess and carrying out related functions of the U.S. Chess Center under the direction of the Executive Director.
- Most of our after-school chess clubs are between 2:00pm – 6:00pm on weekdays, while during-school chess classes are between 10:00am – 2:00pm. During the school year we also teach a Saturday morning class from 9:30am – 12:00pm and staff are expected to work at occasional evening or weekend tournaments and chess league events. In general, full-time staff work four weekdays plus Saturday mornings each week from late September through early June.
SPECIFIC RESPONSIBILITIES
- Teach chess at schools, the U.S. Chess Center, and other places. Chess teachers are expected to learn and use the Chess Center’s procedures and proven instructional methods; new teachers will be taught by existing staff.
- Communicate with parents/students as needed about chess classes and progress.
- Liaison with PTAs/PTOs and school staff as needed.
- Undertake related responsibilities as needed.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- Enjoy playing chess
- Fluency in English and excellent communication skills
- Desire to learn our proven methods of teaching chess
- Personal transportation
- Dependability and maturity
BENEFITS (for Full-Time Teachers)
- Health insurance (medical, dental, and/or vision available) for full-time employees
- Holidays and paid time off for full-time employees.
We observe most federal holidays and there are typically no assignments/classes (aside from our Saturday Open Play) for two weeks in mid-June (following the end of the school year), and for four weeks in late August/early September (following our summer camps). In general, we follow the ‘school calendar’ but also offer Saturday morning classes, occasional weekend tournaments/events, and 6 weeks of summer day camps.