Johnson C. Smith University’s Partners with Activision Blizzard to Host HBCU Esports and Gaming Week Event
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Posted By: Reginald Culpepper on February 27, 2023 Johnson C. Smith University’s College of Business and Professional Studies is pleased to announce its co-production of the first ever “HBCU Esports and Gaming Week” event in partnership with one of the world’s leading esports and gaming corporations, Activision Blizzard on Feb. 28 and March 1, in commemoration of Black History month and Women’s History month. This two-day event will feature fireside chats and panel sessions specifically aimed at exposing scholars, administrators, faculty and staff from representing a myriad of HBCUs, middle schools, high schools, and community organizations to information related to various pertinent topics within the esports and gaming ecosystem, including, but not limited to: esports and gaming career pathways, content creation, and the convergence of esports and the armed forces, etc. The highlight of the HBCU Esports and Gaming Week event will be a fireside chat on March 1st with Johanna Faries, SVP & GM, Call of Duty®. As General Manager, Faries oversees the Call of Duty business, including live operations and franchise-wide strategy. Faries will participate in a fireside chat with Dr. BerNadette Lawson-Williams in an engaging conversation with students, faculty, staff, and community members after taking a brief tour of JCSU’s campus and its Esports Lab, the first at an HBCU. Since its inception in January 2020, JCSU’s Esports and Gaming Trifecta (ESG Trifecta), has made a formidable imprint in the collegiate Esports and Gaming ecosystem. The ESG Trifecta 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 varsity teams in Call of Duty, a popular video game published by Activision. JCSU ESG Trifecta is widely recognized as the blueprint for HBCU Esports. More than three years since its inception, it 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, launching the first online HBCU Esports team store, which features JCSU Esports merchandise, and co-producing 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. “We are honored to partner with Activision Blizzard, one of the world’s leading esports and gaming powerhouses to co-produce this historic “HBCU Esports and Gaming Week” event, which is aimed at positioning gamer-scholars to achieve career success beyond their controllers,” said Dr. BerNadette Lawson-Williams, founder, and coordinator of JCSU’s Esports and Gaming Trifecta, which is housed in the College of Business and Professional Studies. About Johnson C. Smith University Founded in 1867, Johnson C. Smith University is a private, close-knit, urban, historically Black university located in Charlotte, N.C. Our university’s Latin motto, “Sit Lux,” or “Let There Be Light,” encourages our students, faculty and staff to shine the lights of learning and service. With a growing national reputation for integrating the liberal arts with business, the sciences and technology, JCSU offers 21 fields of study, including a master’s degree in social work, to more than 1,000 students from a variety of ethnic, socioeconomic and geographic backgrounds. The university’s excellent academic programs focus on servant leadership, civic engagement and global responsibility to produce students who share in the spirit of entrepreneurship and innovation. For more information about JCSU, visit www.jcsu.edu or follow the university on social media sites Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. About Activision Blizzard Our mission, to connect and engage the world through epic entertainment has never been more important. Through communities rooted in our video games we enable hundreds of millions of people to experience joy, thrill and achievement. We enable social connections through the lens of fun, and we foster purpose and a sense of accomplishment through healthy competition. Like sport, but with greater accessibility, our players can find purpose and meaning through competitive gaming. Video games, unlike any other social or entertainment media, have the ability to break down the barriers that can inhibit tolerance and understanding. Celebrating differences is at the core of our culture and ensures we can create games for players of diverse backgrounds in the 190 countries our games are played. As a member of the Fortune 500 and as a component company of the S&P 500, we have an extraordinary track record of delivering superior shareholder returns for over 30 years. Our sustained success has enabled the company to support corporate social responsibility initiatives that are directly tied to our games. As an example, our Call of Duty Endowment has helped find employment for over 100,000 veterans. Learn more information about Activision Blizzard and how we connect and engage the world through epic entertainment on the company’s website, www.activisionblizzard.com. If you enjoyed this article, Join HBCU CONNECT today for similar content and opportunities via email! |
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Reginald Culpepper
President, Fulfillment and Web Services, HBCUCONNECT Clark Atlanta University class of 1998 Member Since September 2000 |
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