Saint Louis Chess Conference Announcement
The Saint Louis Chess Club has scheduled the second Saint Louis Chess Conference for October 22–24, 2026, at the Chase Park Plaza in Saint Louis, Missouri.
After a decade-long absence of Chess in Education conferences in the United States, the Saint Louis Chess Club (SLCC) hosted a highly successful inaugural Saint Louis Chess Conference in 2024. SLCC now expects to build on that success with its 2026 Saint Louis Chess Conference, scheduled for this fall.
The conference brings together chess educators, researchers, and enthusiasts to explore best practices, review the latest research, and celebrate the game of chess. Conference sponsors include the Saint Louis Chess Club, US Chess, and the Kasparov Chess Foundation, with additional sponsors expected.
Past Keynote Speakers
The keynote speakers at the 2024 conference included:
- Maurice Ashley, the first African American in chess history to earn the Grandmaster title
- Judit Polgár, widely regarded as the strongest female chess player of all time
- Garry Kasparov, legendary World Champion and founder of the Kasparov Chess Foundation
Conference Topics and Events
SLCC will release the conference presentation schedule later this summer. Check back for updates.
Based on the presentations at the inaugural conference, topics are likely to include:
- Findings from rigorous studies investigating the educational benefits of chess
- Gender and chess: data, policy, and practice
- Chess instruction and programming in unique settings, including senior communities, prisons, and programs for students with disabilities
In addition to keynote presentations, attendees can expect to learn from and contribute to sessions on:
- Chess instructional models and their differences
- Best practices in Chess in Education
- Educational resources and teaching materials
While in Saint Louis, attendees will have the opportunity to visit the world-renowned Saint Louis Chess Campus, home to the Saint Louis Chess Club and the World Chess Hall of Fame. Attendees may also wish to attend the closing ceremony of the U.S. Championships, where the 2026 U.S. Champions will be recognized.
2025 Mindsets Chess in Education Conference
To bridge the two-year gap between SLCC’s 2024 and 2026 conferences, the National Scholastic Chess Foundation attracted a sizeable audience to its one-day Mindsets Chess in Education Conference in December 2025.
2026: The Year of Chess in Education
FIDE has designated 2026 as the Year of Chess in Education (CiE), a global initiative to expand educational chess through teacher development, national implementation models, international collaboration, and global events. The initiative’s overarching goal is to double the number of children participating in educational chess between 2021 and 2026.
The Saint Louis Chess Conference aligns with FIDE’s Chess in Education vision of making chess an essential educational tool for students around the world—helping develop academic achievement, 21st-century competencies, and lifelong skills.
We celebrate the Saint Louis Chess Club’s continued support of this important event.
For conference registration and additional information, visit https://registration.stlchessconference.org/the-saint-louis-chess-conference-2026.