Blog and Forum Messages

School Press Releases

PDS Chess Team Victorious at State Championships

Princeton –Princeton Day School’s chess team added more trophies to their case recently, after competing in the annual New Jersey K-12 Grade Championship held on November 21^st at Brookdale Community College in Lindcroft, NJ. More than 300 students from 100 schools participated in the tournament, open to students in grades K-12.

PDS sent 27 players to the tournament from grades Kindergarten through seven. PDS’ Kindergarten, second grade, and third grade teams brought home first-place trophies, and the first grade team garnered third place. In addition, individual winners included George Didita of Princeton, first place in the fifth grade; and Winston Ni and Harrison Bernardi in a three-way tie for first place in the Kindergarten section. At this championship, players compete with other children in their grade; a grade champion is named, along with a school team champion.  PDS has been among the top schools in this championship for the last ten years. 

Bonnie Waitzkin, the longtime chess team coach at PDS, is continually moved when observing the intense concentration of her students: “Most people don’t understand how capable our children are of complex thinking, especially when the barriers of language are removed as they are in music, math, and chess. When I watch the little players concentrating so intently, so intelligently, I get goosebumps.” 

Pictured (in photo attached) from left to right are Kindergarten and first grade team members displaying their trophies: Kai Shah of Plainsboro, Mia Bocian of Lawrenceville, Harrison Bernardi of Rocky Hill, Austin Warren of Pennington, Milan Patel of Newtown, PA, Zach Law of Skillman, and Winston Ni of West Windsor.

For more information about the PDS chess tournaments and other programs, please call (609) 924-6700.