Kevin Pryor is the new President of U.S. Chess!

Kevin Pryor is the new President of the U.S. Chess Federation. A past President of the Florida Chess Association (FCA) and Executive Board member of the U.S. Chess Federation, Pryor was elected as the 32nd President of the U.S. Chess Federation at the Executive Board meeting during the 124th U.S. Open in Norfolk, Virginia.

Kevin Pryor

Having retired from a 38-year career at Johnson & Johnson, Pryor is relatively late to chess, playing in his first tournament ten years ago in Jacksonville. He helped to rejuvenate the Jacksonville Chess Club, became a Tournament Director, and began his service to the chess community. Pryor has served FCA since 2018 and has done a magnificent job expanding activity around the state and setting in motion a more efficient apparatus for membership growth. As president of the FCA, Pryor had a journal chronicling his daily activities in service to chess. Here is his Executive Board bio:

“Kevin Pryor is a recently retired corporate leader who excelled in developing people, improving systems, and managing projects. His leadership in chess began in 2014 on the same day he played in his first tournament when he offered to help revitalize chess in Northeast Florida by reviving the defunct Jacksonville Chess Club. He is a Senior TD, Certified Chess Coach, chess entrepreneur, and chess academy founder. He has served as the President of the Florida Chess Association since 2018. Prior to joining the Executive Board, he served on the Clubs, States & Affiliates, and Senior committees for US Chess. He has also worked very closely with the Women’s committee at national events. Kevin is a native of Mount Vernon, NY, but has lived most of his adult life in Northeast Florida.”

2019 Florida Delegates
William Bowman, Bryan Tillis, Kevin Pryor (FCA President), Jon Haskel, Daaim Shabazz
Photo by Daaim Shabazz/The Chess Drum

U.S. Chess Executive Board Member Kevin Pryor at 2022 Emory Castle Camp
Photo by Bryan Tillis

Pryor started out at Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach, Florida, and later transferred to Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia. At Liberty, he earned a B.S. in Business Management and a Master’s in Business Administration. He is also a member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., a Scoutmaster with Boy Scouts of America, and past president of the North Florida Bicycle Club. He retired from Johnson & Johnson in 2020 after filling various roles at the executive level.

After being elected President of the FCA, he ended up on the radar as a high performer and a good fit for the Executive Board. The Nominating Committee put forth his name, and he accepted the nomination. In 2020 he was elected to the Executive Board and served admirably until he was named President of the 110,000 member organization. Pryor succeeds Randy Bauer.

Having served on Kevin’s Board of the Florida Chess Association, I can attest to his passion, outstanding vision and tireless energy. U.S. Chess is in good hands.

~Daaim Shabazz

He gave a short interview after the proceedings.

Kevin Pryor is the new US Chess President, @jfernandez is our new Vice President, Chuck Unruh is our VP of Finance, and Mike Hoffpauir is our Secretary. #USOpenChess pic.twitter.com/LuvL5H9BWp

— US Chess (@USChess) August 4, 2024

U.S. Chess Executive Board 2024-2025

Seated L-R: Ranae Bartlett, David Hater, Chuck Unruh, Mike Hoffpauir
Standing L-R: John Fernandez, Kevin Pryor, Randy Bauer, Leila D’Aquin, Lakshmana Viswanath