Chicago City Wire

A funding shortage is threatening to put an end to an award-winning Chicago Public Schools chess team.

Math teacher Joe Ocol founded the team at the Charles W. Earle STEM Elementary School and has been using personal funds to help them travel to regional competitions, according to an Illinois Policy Institute article. STEM is defined by the U.S. Department of Education as science, technology, engineering and math.

But now that the financial burden has become too great, outside funding is needed to continue the chess team's success. The funding is needed for travel to competitions, which helps winners ultimately receive money for college, according to the institute.

Math and chess teacher Joe Ocol of Earle STEM Elementary.

“There is a lot of talent in Englewood,” Ocol said in the article. “They just need an opportunity to shine.”

An instance of violence prompted Ocol to start the chess team, the article stated. In 2005, gang members shot and killed one of his high school students. He later started teaching chess after school.

“Slowly, champions began to emerge,” the article said.

One champion is eighth-grader Tamya Fultz, whom Ocol has dubbed “chess queen of the South” for her winning streak at area matches.

Fultz earned one of three team trophies from the U.S. Chess Federation SuperNationals in Nashville this year, according to the institute. Another star performer is Taahir Levi, who aced a blitz competition, winning the game in under five minutes, at the same tournament.

Ocol’s team at Earle STEM Elementary was the only team in Illinois to land in the top 25 at the SuperNationals, the article said.

Those superstars are inspiring younger children. 

“You should see the kindergarten and first-graders coming in wanting to learn chess," Ocol is quoted as saying. "They want to be like Tamya.”

Fultz’s success on the chess team has prompted her to plan a college career studying engineering, according to the article. She was the only female, African-American and Chicago public school student to place among 25 finalists at the 2017 state chess tournament.

Fultz’s mother, Andrea, understands the program’s impact.

“We try to teach the kids that the smallest piece can be the largest," she said in the article. “If this program dries up … their hearts would be crushed.”

Ocol’s solution is to find a corporate donor to help cover the cost of tournament travel and participation.

“Winning is the best part,” Levi said in the article. “The mental strategy has helped me.”

Levi and Fultz faced off during a practice match. As his older teammate prevailed, Levi wanted to throw in the towel, but Ocol wouldn’t let him.

“You must never give up," Ocol told Levi, according to the article. "Even if you are down, Taahir, you need to keep fighting. (Quitting) is unacceptable."