Meet our Chess Coach

Mr. Adam Geisler has been a teacher and chess coach at Bateman Elementary School in Chicago Public Schools since 2007. He first learned the game on a fateful snow day in Michigan when he was bored at home and decided to grab a tattered copy of Bobby Fischer Teaches Chess off his father’s bookshelf. He didn’t get very competitive until Bateman’s former principal hinted that he would like to see a Bateman chess team.

Over the years, the Bateman team has been successful at the local and state levels, having won multiple city championships and a few Illinois All-Grades titles.

Mr.Geisler previously taught in Beijing, China, where he also dabbled in Chinese chess (xiàngqí). You can find him at most big scholastic chess tournaments in the Chicagoland area, and occasionally across the board at an open tournament.

Mr. Geisler is a member of the U.S. Chess Federation, Illinois Chess Association, and a Board member of the Chicago Chess Foundation.