International Grandmaster to Challenge Students at 20th Annual Chess Event

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DATE: March 18, 2008

CONTACT: Lisa Saunders

(845) 574-4244

International Grandmaster to Challenge Students at 20th Annual Chess Event

at SUNY Rockland Community College

Suffern, NY - International Chess Grandmaster and Pan-American Intercollegiate Champion, Gennady Sagalchik, will challenge twenty-five high school and college students simultaneously at SUNY Rockland Community College.

Students from RCC and Rockland high schools are invited to play.  Each school district in Rockland County is invited to bring up to two students.  The event attracts students and faculty alike.  Many attend simply to watch the Grandmaster in action.

Gennady Sagalchik was born in Minsk, the capital of Byelorussia in the former Soviet Union. He has played since age three and began formal study at age ten at the Soviet Union's most prestigious chess schools. By the time he was sixteen, he began winning international tournaments. He emigrated to the U.S. in 1991, continuing to advance up the ranks of chess experts.

A graduate of Borough of Manhattan Community College and Brooklyn College, Sagalchik's goal is to popularize chess in the United States and to help introduce chess into the schools’ curriculum at all levels.

The Chess Event is sponsored by the Rockland Community College Student Government Association, the Office of Student Involvement, and the Chess Club.

EVENT FACTS

Date: Tuesday, April 8

Host: Student Government Association, the Office of Student Involvement, and the Chess Club

Type: Chess Event

Time: 12- 4 p.m.

Location: Faculty/Staff Dining Room, Cultural Arts Center, Rockland Community College, 145 College Road, Suffern.

Admission: Free and open to public

More Info: Peter Arvanites at (845) 574-4767 or Janna Liberant at (845) 574-4513.

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Rockland Community College, a unit of the State University of New York, is located 25 miles northwest of NYC. The majority of its students transfer to four-year colleges, and many find immediate employment upon earning their associate’s degree or certificate. The College also offers others, from preschoolers to senior citizens, the opportunity to simply learn something new. Quality education...at a price you can afford.