Each year, the U.S. Chess Trust awards seven scholarships totaling $5,000 to high school juniors and seniors to reward chess excellence, community service, sportsmanship, and academic performance.
Matthew Hoekstra of Charlotte, North Carolina earned the first place award. Matthew attends Providence High School, has a USCF rating of 2360, and is a member of the National Honor Society. Matthew plans to attend either Duke or Yale University. Cindy Tsai of Gainesville, Florida received the second place award. Cindy is the reigning Pan-American Junior Girls Chess Champion, has a rating of 2167, and is an accomplished pianist. Cindy plans to attend either Harvard University or MIT. A.J. Steigman of Parkland, Florida received third place recognition. He has a rating of 2262, is the current U.S. Junior Open Chess Champion and is a member of both the English and Math National Honor Societies. With a rating of 2128, Anna Levina from Fayetteville, NY won the fourth place award. Anna plans to attend Duke University and has already earned 6 college-level credits for her research on the effects of chess on children�s memory and grades. Curt Collyer of Spokane, Washington won the fifth award; he has a rating of 2143 and a GPA of 3.9. The 2001 U.S. Amateur East Reserve Champion Nikita Panasenko from Highland Park, NJ (rated 1809) won the sixth award; he is a National Merit Commended Scholar, a member of the Debate team and Model UN, and plans to attend MIT. Anath Pappu of North Olmstead, OH, who plans to attend Ohio State, earned the seventh award. He is a National Merit Commended Scholar and has received the AP Scholar Award from the nationally recognized Advanced Placement program. Anath has a USCF rating of 2155.
The U.S. Chess Trust is the charitable arm of the U.S. Chess Federation, offering programs such as the Scholar Chessplayer Award, as well as the Chess-For-Youth program, which donates chess boards, chess sets, and free memberships to economically disadvantaged children