Checkmate! It was a race against the clock – and each other – during the Bright Minds RVA Chess Tournament, where a room full of area students matched wits last Friday, Aug. 27, at the Black History Museum and Cultural Center of Virginia. The tournament was the culmination of two weeks of classes taught by Fleming E. Samuels, a retired Richmond Public Schools administrator, and Dr. Theodore Andrews of Hampton University in a pilot program set up by the Bernice E. Travers Foundation. The inspiring group of 13- to 16-year-olds showed off the skills they learned during the tournament in which 14 students participated. Bottom photo, Binford Middle School student Jacory Oliver-Ray, 13, contemplates his next move, while, below, Franklin Military Academy student Ptah Ahmed, 13, left, faces off against Denzel Johnson, 14. Clinching the top three spots and prizes were Denzel Johnson; Jonathan Keel, 15, a student at Richmond Community High School; and Ptah Ahmed. (photo by Clement Britt)
