Chess Boy Scouts Merit Badge announced in Saint Louis

Dr. Jeanne Sinquefield, who founded the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis with her husband Rex Sinquefield made a special announcement at the closing ceremony of the 2010 U.S. Women’s Championship, held at the the Saint Louis University John Cook School of business. Dr. Sinquefield, who has supported and volunteered for the Boy Scouts for more than 20 years, announced that the Boy Scouts of America just approved Chess as the next Merit Badge for development.

Boys Scouts earn Merit Badges in more than 100 areas from camping to coin collecting.

A Chess Merit Badge would show that the recipient has attained a specified level of knowledge of the game of Chess. This merit badge would focus on the benefits that chess can bring, as this sample from the proposal shows.

The rationale for this merit badge is that Chess is an exercise of infinite possibilities for the mind, one which develops mental abilities used throughout life: concentration, critical thinking, abstract reasoning, problem solving, pattern recognition, strategic planning, creativity, analysis, synthesis, and evaluation, to name a few. Through chess, we learn how to analyze a situation by focusing on important factors and by eliminating distractions. We learn to devise creative solutions and put a plan into action. Chess works because it is self-motivating. The game has fascinated humans for almost 2000 years, and the goals of attack and defense, culminating in checkmate, inspire us to dig deep into our mental reserves.

Look for more details in the coming months about this exciting project.