Type Non-profit Purpose Chess education | Legal status Foundation | |
Formation June 2000; 16 years ago (2000-06) Founder Erik Anderson, Laurie and Scott Oki, Yasser Seirawan Headquarters Bellevue, Washington, USA | ||
America's Foundation for Chess (AF4C) is a nonprofit chess foundation begun in greater Seattle, Washington, USA in 2000.
Scott Oki and Laurie Oki founded Seattle Chess Foundation in June, 2000, which later became America's Foundation for Chess. Entrepreneur Erik Anderson and grandmaster Yasser Seirawan are also credited as founders of America's Foundation for Chess.
The foundation was originally based at Carillon Point, in suburban Kirkland, Washington, and moved to Bellevue in 2013.
AF4C sponsored the U.S. Chess Championship starting in 1999.
First Move
The foundations's First Move curriculum uses chess as a learning tool in second and third grade classrooms to teach critical and creative thinking skills and improve overall academic achievement. First Move is taught one hour per week, over the course of the school year. The Chess Lady teaches the curriculum via streaming video, classroom teachers facilitate the activities and can learn with their students. In 2014-15 the program will serve about 140,000 students across the United States and a few schools internationally.