Will Host Educational Session
CHARLOTTE, N.C. / Nov. 7, 2023 – Johnson C. Smith University’s College of Business and Professional Studies is pleased to announce that its Esports and Gaming Trifecta, the first of its kind at an HBCU, has been invited by Discovery Place Science in Charlotte, N.C., to host an informational session, specifically on esports and gaming at its “Science on the Rocks” event, which is scheduled for Friday, Nov. 17, 2023, from 6 to 10 p.m.
The workshop, titled “Johnson C. Smith University’s Esports & Gaming Trifecta presents Esports & Gaming 101: A Complete Guide to Gaming,” will cover pertinent topics related to gaming. The workshop will be held from 6 to 7 p.m.
Topics will include more information about what esports is, various gaming careers, the cognitive benefits of gaming, toxicity in gaming and how to properly combat it, scamming and other predatory behaviors, fraud prevention, racism, sexism and parental controls, among others. This workshop is aimed at informing both non-gamers, gamers and gamer-parents of the innumerable opportunities that exist within the world of gaming, while helping them understand potential risks that they could encounter.
“We are honored to partner with Discovery Place Science, a leader in STEM education in the Carolinas, to produce an informational session on esports and gaming that will provide gamers, non-gamers and the parents of gamers with the fundamentals, as well as benefits of gamification,” said Dr. BerNadette Lawson-Williams, founder, and coordinator of JCSU’s Esports and Gaming Trifecta.
“I am excited for this partnership," added Kyla Thomas, a sophomore Computer Science major, who currently serves as JCSU’s Esports club president, as well as Business Manager/Public Relations & Marketing Assistant for JCSU’s Esports and Gaming Trifecta. "It is a wonderful opportunity for people to learn more about what esports is and how gaming is so much more than a hobby."
“Science on the Rocks” is the winner of Charlotte Magazine’s Best of the Best Award. It is a monthly, adults-only social event that provides access to the Discovery Place Science’s planetarium shows, featured documentary, exhibits and lab activities, among other interactive experiences. Tickets are required to attend the event and must be purchased online and in advance.
Since its inception in January 2020, JCSU’s Esports and Gaming Trifecta, has made a formidable imprint in the collegiate Esports and Gaming ecosystem. It is the first-ever program of its kind at an HBCU and is comprised of an Esports and Gaming Management academic program, an Esports Lab and a highly competitive Esports Club, which has received notability in the collegiate esports landscape by defeating numerous well-known club and varsity teams.
JCSU Esports and Gaming Trifecta is widely recognized as the blueprint for HBCU Esports. Since it's inception three years ago, the program has and continues to dominate in the esports and gaming ecosystem and on the collegiate landscape. It has acquired local, state, regional, international and congressional acclaim. Among its accomplishments include being nominated for the 2021 Esports Collegiate Award and the 2023 Esports Business Summit Collegiate Esports /Gaming Program of the Year, the first for an HBCU. Additionally, it launched the first online HBCU Esports team store, which features JCSU Esports merchandise, and co-produced the first ever HBCU Esports Conference and Career Expo to be hosted in a blockchain ecosystem, in partnership with MetArena, a technology company based in St. Petersburg, Fla.
For more information about the Esports and Gaming Trifecta at JCSU, contact Lawson-Williams at blwilliams@jcsu.edu.
