Though she is near blind, Jessica Lauser has not let her disability get in the way of what she loves to do: play chess.

Nicknamed “Chessica,” the 27-year-old history major has been checkmating for almost 15 years and claims to not stop until she is a chess grandmaster.

“In my eigth grade yearbook, where they ask the students what they aspire to be, most people wrote stuff like lawyer or doctor. You know what I wrote? Grandmaster. That was when I was 13,” Lauser said. “That dream is still true.”

Lauser’s early chess experience consisted of occasional matches with family, but it was in her eigth grade math class when her teacher recognized the unique talent and encouraged her development.

“The first day I walked into class, I was scared I was going to be teased horribly. I saw two back tables with chess sets waiting to be played and all the worry about being teased disappeared,” said Lauser. “Chess has always been a way to cope with challenges.”

By dissecting her moves and analyzing her losses, Lauser has managed to develop her chess playing skills.

Lauser is currently a Class B chess player with a1680 rating. The next class, A, starts at 1800 and a master starts at 2200. Ratings are rewarded to chess player for beating opponents in official organized tournaments. She has some ways to go, but she remains focused, as her next tournament is a few months away in Las Vegas, she said.

Today, she participates in numerous tournaments around the country. She won joint first place Class D at the 2003 U.S. Open, in 2003, she was awarded the Clayton Walker Memorial Upset Prize for defeating the 2002 U.S. Blind Champion, who outranked her by two-and-a-half classes. Lauser is one of the top 100 women in the country for Blitz, a quicker paced version of the game, according to the United States Chess Federation.

If one wanted to see Lauser live up to her nickname, she can be found on the first floor of the Cesar Chavez Student Center where she teaches chess and plays against students almost daily.

She started setting up chess games on her own accord, whenever time permitted. But after the student center took notice they offered her a weekly position one floor under in The Depot across from the pub.

“She was setting up on the ground floor and I noticed a big crowd was forming around her,” said Alison Victor, Manager of The Depot in the Ceaser Chavez Student Center. “I thought it would be cool to book her for The Depot because we’ve been having success with our Friday Poker events.”

But Lauser was discontent with her scheduled Monday nights at The Depot because of less foot traffic at the new location. She eventually moved herself back to the ground level of the Student Center across the information desk where she remains today.

No matter the age, race, disabled or not, Lauser said she believes anyone can be good at the game if they set their minds to it.

“Pick a goal and set your sights to it. What holds people back is usually themselves,” said Lauser.