MEET OUR TEAM
DIANA TULMAN
Co-Founder & Director
Diana has a love for the game of chess, which helps inspire her students. Read More >
IRINA LEVITINA
Co-Founder
Irina is one of the most accomplished female player from the days of the Soviet Union. Read More >
CHRIS WELCOME
NM & Chess Instructor
An experienced chess instructor, Chris comes from the Brooklyn “Black Bear School of Chess” Read More >
ALEX STRIPUNSKY
GM & Chess Instructor
GM Stripunsky is recognized as one of America's Elite Grandmasters and Chess Coaches. Read More >
TATIANA GRABUZOVA
WGM & Chess Instructor
As ICA's strongest chess player, Tanya is a great role model for our female players. Read More >
SLAVA KOZA
Chess Instructor
A product of ICA, Slava, only in his 20's has been teaching for over a decade. Read More >
SERGEY GRABUZOV
Sr. Coach & Camp Director
Master Sergey has trained and prepared a total of 5 current Grandmaster.
Read More >
HANA ITKIS
WFM Chess Instructor
A NYC based chess instructor and Woman Fide Master, Hana's been teaching for over 10 yrs. Read More >
YVEGENIY SOKOLOVSKIY
Chess Instructor & Math Teacher
Including Math, Yevgeniy loves Chess and Literature. He is also a private chess tutor, Read More >
IGOR YELISEYEV
Chess Instructor
Chess and working with kids are two of this coach's greatest passions.
Read More >
GENRY KRICHEVSKY
Chess Instructor
Starting as a student at the age of 4 and one of ICA's prized students for 15 yrs, he is now a coach Read More >
IVETTE RUBIO
Chess Instructor
Chess has allowed Ivette to grow in ways that go beyond the chess board.
Read More >
VITALY TSEYTLIN
Chess Instructor
Often acting like a kid, he transmits knowledge easily and kids feel like he
is one of them. Read More >
DAVID RUBENFELD
Chess Instructor
As an instructor, David values a fundamental understanding of the psychology in chess. Read More >
SEAN FINN
Chess Instructor
Sean has taught chess professionally for many years and fell in love with the game at the age of six. Read More >
NICHOLAS KATZ
Chess Instructor & Math Teacher
As a chess player for over 18 years, Nick loves aggressive and tactical games. Read More >
JOE PACELLA
Chess Instructor & TD
Joe created a board game called Chess-A-Rama and specializes working with younger players. Read More >
SIMON TSINIS
Chess Instructor
Simon possesses great skill in the ability to evaluate a student's strengths and weaknesses. Read More >
MELANIE LERNER
Chess Instructor
Melanie carries a love for teaching and a life-long admiration for chess.
ROBERT LIEBERMAN
Chess Instructor & Photographer
A retired NYC High School Social studies teacher. Robert is a professional photographer at ICA. Read More >
ROMAN KHARCHUK
Chess Instructor & Math Teacher
Teaches Chess and Math at ICA, privately tutors and has taught High School. Read More >.
PHILIP BLUMIN
Chess Instructor
Philip strives to keep chess class fun by often giving fun in-class problems to his students. Read More >
ANDREW VOLYNSKY
Chess Instructor
Andrew enjoys coaching and playing chess and avidly runs track and plays soccer. Read More >
ALESSANDRO
Chess Instructor & TD
Alessandro is passionate about teaching, thinking about chess and about the world. Read More >
ARTUR YUSUPOV
GM & Chess Coach & Author
GM Yusupov has played a major role in the preparation of many of today's younger Grandmasters. Read More >
ZOYA KOZA
Director of the Math Program
A retired Math Teacher for the NYC DOE, Zoya heads our Math program at ICA. Read More >
ALEX CHERNIN
GM & Chess Coach & Author
GM Chernin's talent as a trainer is all the more amazing because of his ability to perceive the general trends in chess culture. Read More >