By Anna Klein-Christie, Executive Director
Baxter Academy for Technology and Science

At Baxter Academy, we believe learning should be alive — full of curiosity, challenge, and connection to the real world. That’s why programs like our Chess Initiative have become such a powerful part of our STEM mission.

At Baxter, students play chess the old-fashioned way — on a real board, face to face, with all computers put away. In that analog space, something remarkable happens: students slow down. They read each other’s expressions, anticipate outcomes, and think several moves ahead. Each match becomes a quiet laboratory for experimentation and analysis — a living model of the scientific method that demands focus, logic, and creativity.

But chess goes beyond logic. It teaches perseverance, concentration, and resilience. Every student learns that progress comes through trial and error, that reflection is the key to mastery, and that failure is simply the next step toward understanding. These are the very habits of mind that drive innovation in labs, workshops, and classrooms. ChessIt strengthens core STEM fluencies — spatial reasoning, pattern recognition, sequencing, and data analysis. A strong chess player is a systems thinker: always looking ahead, identifying dependencies, and anticipating outcomes. In other words, a future engineer, coder, or designer in the making.

In an era defined by generative intelligence, chess also anchors students in critical thinking. While AI can process thousands of moves in an instant, it cannot replicate the human capacity for judgment, creativity, and ethical reasoning. When our students play chess, they’re not only sharpening their minds — they’re practicing the essential skill of thinking for themselves in a world increasingly shaped by algorithms. It’s a reminder that true innovation still begins with curiosity, not code.

What makes our program even more meaningful is who leads it. Taught by a U.S. Chess Master from South Sudan, the course brings a global perspective to strategy and discipline, reminding students that intellect and perseverance connect people across cultures and continents. For many of our students, chess has become both a mental challenge and a source of pride — proof that focus, creativity, and strategy are universal languages.

In essence, chess transforms abstract STEM skills into living habits of mind — logic, empathy, and foresight — all through play. It reminds us that at Baxter, engaged learning isn’t about memorizing facts. It’s about learning to think deeply, act decisively, strategize ahead of the moment, and approach every challenge — in school or in life — with clarity and curiosity.

Real World Now. One move at a time.

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