On March 1, District of Columbia Mayor Muriel Bowser will issue an official proclamation honoring the Howard University Chess Team for their success at the 2025 Pan-American Intercollegiate Chess Championship, held January 2-5. It’s a moment of celebration for the team — and a reflection of how far they’ve come in just a few short years.
Howard’s triumph at the prestigious tournament in Charlotte, N.C., solidifies their growing reputation as a rising force in collegiate chess. Competing in the Under-1800 Section, Division Five, the Bison squad not only secured first place as a team — they also brought home an individual honor.
One of their own, Malik Castro-DeVarona, won the award for Top Board Two player — a distinction given to the strongest player in that position across the entire field. Castro, a senior majoring in political science and sociology, won every single game he played at the tournament.
“I hadn’t experienced playing at those stakes before,” he said. “Winning all six games was a nice personal achievement. But more than anything, I enjoyed playing for Howard and alongside my friends.”
The Pan-Am Championship draws powerhouse programs from across the country, including many with long-established chess traditions. Howard University stood out as the only HBCU in the tournament.
The team’s rise has been years in the making, guided by passionate students and supportive mentors. Lawrence Custis, the club’s current president and a mechanical engineering major from Camden, New Jersey, remembers when Howard’s chess scene was far more humble.
“When I first got to Howard University, we were just a few students meeting in a basement, playing games wherever we could find space,” Custis recalled. “Now, we’re traveling to national tournaments, competing in places like Charlotte, Seattle, and Austin, Texas.”
In the months leading up to Pan-Ams, the team worked closely with their coach, Jerald Times, a renowned chess educator and former Chess Educator of the Year. His guidance helped the players sharpen their skills and prepare for the intense competition.
“This team’s success represents more than just chess,” said Nisa Muhammad, D.Min, Howard chess club advisor and assistant dean of religious life in the Office of the Dean of the Chapel. “This is about showing that Black students belong in this intellectual space — and that they can excel.”
Along with Muhammad, the Howard chess community has been nurtured by informal advisors like Jamaal Abdul-Alim, a former Chess Journalist of the Year, who donated equipment (including a glow-in-the-dark chessboard) and served as a mentor to the club.
“Chess is still often seen as a white- and Asian-dominated space,” Abdul-Alim said. “For an all-Black team from an HBCU to not just show up, but to win at a tournament like Pan-Ams — that’s a major statement.”
The DC mayoral proclamation also recognizes the significance of the victory. The proclamation reads, in part:
“Your award for top Division Five team is a testament to your exemplary teamwork, skill, and dedication. Your stellar achievements at the premier intercollegiate team chess tournament in the Americas will inspire and encourage current and future generations to push the boundaries of what is possible in the world of chess.”
The team’s journey is far from over. In April, they’ll head to Atlanta to compete in the HBCU Chess Classic, where they hope to build on their Pan-Am momentum and continue blazing trails for Black chess players everywhere.
When it comes to Howard’s chess club, Castro-DeVarona reflects that the chess community has had a profound impact on his years at Howard. Through the club, Malik said he was able to find a path of constant growth and improvement— and a way to push himself to new heights. He also connected with a whole community of chess players, both in the city and on campus. Some of his most important mentors and closest friends, he said, came through chess.
“I hate doing nothing — so chess gives me something I can always work on,” he said. “It’s also been an escape and a way to meet people. It’s been one of the most meaningful parts of my time at Howard.”
Photo: Pictured from left to right: Lawrence Custis, Samir Acharya, Malik Castro-DeVarona, and Xavier Ntamere, members of the Howard University Chess Team.
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