Chess at the Acton Council on Aging

I started in high school — our team won the state championship — and played actively in college and until age 30, and then played almost no chess until age 65!) Had four games published in the Boston Globe and New York Times, but all except one were losses!
 
Please tell me about the classes and chess club you are holding at the Acton Council on Aging, when and where they happen and who is eligible to participate. 

A 10-week chess class for beginners meets Thursdays from 1 to 2 p.m. in the Acton Council on Aging cafeteria. The first three lessons cover how the pieces move and different types of checkmate.

For each of the next seven lessons, we spend half the time learning a chess strategy and half the time playing chess.

After the class, a chess club for more experienced players meets from 2 to 4:30 p.m.
Anyone eligible for the Acton Council on Aging is welcome to join the chess class or chess club — the more the better!  Beginners will want to wait until the next set of classes begins [a date has not yet been announced.]
 
Historically chess has been a male-dominated event but in recent years more women and girls have joined. How do you see this trend playing out in your chess circles? 

The future of chess is very bright. It is becoming very popular with young children and it is likely that it will eventually be part of the school curriculum, since it is helps build the skills for success in other studies. About five colleges now offer full-time scholarships for strong chess players.

Girls are also playing chess much more than they did in the past. Over the past three years, I taught about 100 school-age children in voluntary programs and about half were girls. At one school, we had an all-girls chess team!

At the highest levels, several women  — most notably the Polgar sisters from Hungary [Susan, Sofia and Judit Polgar]  — have competed successfully against the best male players in the world. I believe that this trend will continue.