“I’m quite overwhelmed and deeply humbled to be chosen as this year’s AGF Teacher of the Year,” said Schumer. “It’s quite an honor to join all the past recipients who have done so much towards the teaching, promotion, and dissemination of go.” Ordinarily a Teacher of the Year wins a free trip to the US Go Congress. As that is online this year, Schumer will be invited to the 2022 Go Congress in Estes Park as a guest of the AGF.
Schumer has been teaching a course on go at Middlebury College in Vermont since 1987. “The course is more about introducing and promoting the history, spirit, and cultural aspects surrounding go as much as it is about improving one’s measurable ranking,” says Schumer. “Self awareness and self-improvement is a large part of the course’s intent, but developing a deeper appreciation of the game and a humble respect for its great practitioners is even more important. The course is also a writing course where students write and revise papers on the rules of go, on the theme of ‘Go as a Metaphor’, on the concept of ‘Collaboration versus Competition’. The students also research a related East Asian art or tradition and give a presentation on their findings. The ‘aha’ moment for many of them is when they discover the powerful connections and interdependencies between the spirit of go and that of the art they have been studying.”
Schumer has also created and run the Vermont Go Club, which has been active for over 30 years. “The best way to promote go is through friendships and through such rich, joyful, meaningful get togethers. In addition, I add one weekend meeting a month devoted to teaching new players about the game. Again I am more interested in simply making them aware of this wonderful game, teaching them the basics, making sure they have a fun and positive experience (say beating me on a 9×9 board with a five stone handicap), and leaving it at that. The analogy I like to give is that more people take art appreciation courses in college than become studio art majors. Museums rely on an educated public that appreciates beautiful art whether or not most people can produce beautiful art. Similarly, the American public seems to support and love football (based on the number of people who watch the Super Bowl, say), yet very few of us reach the level of even playing at the college level – or even care to. We should continue to strive to educate the public about the game and foster a deep appreciation of it. Our commitment and affection for the game can truly inspire others.”
“I want to thank the selection committee for their warm support and confidence in me. I promise to redouble my effort to ‘pay it forward’ by continuing to pass along my knowledge and enthusiasm of the game to the younger generation,” adds Schumer. -Paul Barchilon, EJ Youth Editor. Photo: Schumer with a young opponent at the Osaka Go Camp in 2018
