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Meet Our Instructors

IM-elect Joshua Colas

IM-elect Joshua Colas was the youngest-ever African-American to become a National Master, a feat he accomplished at the age of 12. Josh has completed the required “norms” and will be awarded the International Master title when his FIDE rating crosses the 2400 threshold.

Josh has frequently appeared at NSCF public events and has taught in our summer camps. Josh got his start taking lessons and playing in NSCF tournaments while attending White Plains Public Schools. In 2020, Josh graduated from Webster University in St. Louis which he attended on a “full-ride” chess scholarship and studied under famed chess coach Grandmaster Susan Polgar.

WFM Dr. Amelia Hernandez

WFM Dr. Amelia Hernandez is a Womens FIDE Master who was a 6-time U-20 National Champion and 5-time Women’s National champion in her home country, Venezuela. She was a World U-18 Girls Champion, and also won a Gold Medal at the 1994 World Chess Olympiad in Moscow. Amelia is the youngest member ever inducted into the National Sports Hall of Fame. Amelia left competitive chess to become a medical doctor. She returned to chess almost 30 years later, again winning the Venezuela championship.

Amelia emigrated to the United States in 2019 and is the elementary grades chess teacher at the Franklin Academy Charter School in Sunrise. She also works with the NSCF’s Sunrise Center for Excellence in Chess.

NM Chris Welcome

NM Chris Welcome has been teaching chess to children since 2000. He has taught chess within the curriculum in over 30 public schools. Chris has also coached several school teams to success in national competition, and guided three young players over the 2000 rating level.

Chris was part of a group in Brooklyn called the “Black Bear School of Chess” which fostered the growth and development of many African American chess players in the late 1970s. Many masters emerged from this group, including Ernest Colding, Ronald Simpson, William Morrison, and GM Maurice Ashley. Chris earned his National Master’s title in 1982.

Jim Santorelli

Jim Santorelli is a USCF Candidate Master, and is also the Associate Executive Director of the NSCF.

Jim has been teaching chess for over 30 years and can count 13 National Champions among his students. He is known for his tremendous ability to motivate young players.

Jim was the “architect” for the successful Greenburgh Central 7 Schools chess program which continues to this day. He was also the coach of the Woodlands Junior High School chess team that won the USCF National JHS Championship in 1996. Jim continues to teach in NSCF chess programs in Westchester and Lower Connecticut.

Nathan Goldberg

Nathan Goldberg began teaching chess to children in 1999 for Chess-in-the-Schools. He became an elementary math and chess teacher for the NYC Department of Education in 2005. In 2016, Nathan joined the NSCF to focus on teaching his first love, chess.

A Category 1 player, Nathan helps his students understand the connections between chess and other subjects, particularly math. He has created chess worksheets, puzzles, activities, and poetry to help him teach, always challenging his students to think in new ways. Seeing chess as the perfect metaphor for life, Nathan shares his enthusiasm and passion for learning at every opportunity, and has the ability to motivate children to achieve.

NM Nicholas Rosenthal

NM Nicholas Rosenthal is a National Master who has been playing since the age of 9, and has been teaching chess for the past 7 years. Nicholas has won a number of Florida State and National Championships. He shares his valuable tournament insights to help his students improve.

A graduate of South Plantation High School, Nicholas attended Lindenwood University on a chess scholarship, and served as the chess team captain during his final two years. After earning his degree in sports management, Nicholas returned to South Florida and joined the NSCF/Sunrise team in 2020.

Robert McKenzie

Robert McKenzie was a stand-out basketball player who did not get into chess until college. His brother had picked up the game on road trips while playing in the NFL. Robert’s drive to finally beat his brother at something motivated him to read a book on chess and he was soon winning tournaments and became a Category 1 player.

Robert began his career as a 2nd grade teacher at Castle Hill Elementary in Lauderhill. After earning his Masters in Math Education, he became the Math Specialist and started a school-wide chess program. Today, Robert is the STEM and math specialist at Lauderdale Lakes Middle School where he teaches chess to all his students.

Robert teaches in NSCF community programs across Broward County. He leads NSCF workshops for area teachers, and is also the NSCF tournament director for South Florida.

Chris Goldthorpe

Chris Goldthorpe has been a full-time chess instructor for more than 20 years. As a trained electronics engineer with a B.S.E.E., Chris brings a mathematical perspective and precision to everything he does, including teaching and playing the game of chess.

Chris has authored several books on chess and is also educating students through his Youtube videos. Chris has founded several chess clubs in South Florida. Among his programs, Chris was the long-time chess teacher at University School in Davie which has produced many strong players and teams that competed successfully at national championships.

Polly Wright

Polly Wright is a former New England Women’s Champion and was regularly ranked among the top 100 women in the U.S. Polly is a triathlete who continues to compete in Senior events around the world. She is also a black belt in Tae Kwon Do. With an indomitable competitive spirit, Polly draws on her experiences to inspire her chess students to always do their best.

Polly has been a tournament director for over 30 years. She holds the title of USCF Senior Tournament Director and frequently works at national championship events. Polly is the Chief Tournament Director for our NSCF and Hunter chess tournaments.

Silvio Rosato

Silvio Rosato has been an NSCF instructor since 1999 and teaches both enrichment and curricular classes for the NSCF. A master of classroom management and teaching strategies, Silvio effectively uses many sources and varies his approach adjusting his tone, activity and interaction to best meet the needs of the children. Silvio has been a tournament director for NSCF as well as for the New York State Championships. He excels at directing the young players in the K-1 section where his calm manner while maintaining high standards makes events a pleasure for our youngest players and for their parents.

JOE MAHER

Joe Maher learned to play chess as a child but did not start playing tournaments until college. A former NYPD officer who retired as a lieutenant, Joe has been teaching chess since 1998. He was president of the Bronx-Yonkers Chess Club for many years. In addition to teaching for NSCF, he has been one of our tournament directors and organizers.

CHRIS KEEFE

Chris Keefe has been a Class A tournament player since 2011. He has a USCF peak rating of 1939. Chris has defeated many chess masters in tournament play and drew International Master Jack Peters in a simul in 2016. He is a former student of Jeremy Silman and Dan Heisman and has been teaching chess with the NSCF since 2017. Chris is also a pianist and has been teaching and performing music since 1998. A Yamaha Music Education System trained teacher, Chris graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music with a BA in jazz studies and earned his master’s degree from the Manhattan School of Music.

LAWRENCE JOHNSON

Lawrence Johnson began playing chess in his younger years and says his high point was defeating GM Svetozar Gligoric in the 70's; at the time GM Gligoric was rated 20th in the world. After many years focusing on family and career, Lawrence returned to tournament play and has been active as a senior player for over 20 years. As a teacher, Lawrence taught chess in New York City Public Schools for over 10 years before joining the NSCF.

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