Content creation competitions connect video game play and real-world career experience for high schoolers

(Orange County, CA – February 5, 2019) – High school students interested in a variety of STEM¹ and creative careers will now be able to compete for recognition and mentorship opportunities in “Beyond the Game™” challenges offered by the North America Scholastic Esports Federation (NASEF). There are 17 categories of competition; entries will be reviewed by a panel of industry professionals. Creators of the top entries will be selected to receive a mentoring session with an industry member related to each challenge, as well as a NASEF swag pack. All entrants have the opportunity to have their work featured on NASEF’s platforms using #esportsBTG.

“NASEF gears all of our programs to educating students in a fun and compelling esports environment. Teens are so smart, and they have so many talents! These Beyond the Game™ challenges provide meaningful opportunities for personal development in the esports world that students love,” said Mark Deppe, Commissioner of NASEF.

Diagram Citation: Anderson, Tsaasan, Reitman, Lee, Wu, Steele, Turner & Steinkuehler (2018)

Aaron Teats, Vice President and CMO of the Anaheim Ducks NHL team, said, “In every sport, for every professional player on the ice, field, court, or arena, hundreds or even thousands of professionals work to support the gameplay in marketing, content creation, data analysis, communications, and more. These Challenges bring high school clubs the same reality that exists in the professional sports world. NASEF’s work to help students prepare for the real world is impressive.”

Beyond the Game™ challenges will run from February to May of 2019. Categories include:

•  Ready, Set, Draw: Create Fan Art
•  Making Money Moves: Host a Fundraiser
•  Let’s Get Hype: Create a Club or Team Video
•  Adopt a Bot: Upgrade Your Discord Server
•  Surf’s Up: Design Your Club Website

Participants must be members of current NASEF clubs. Clubs are free to establish, and NASEF offers ongoing support and guidance to esports clubs through personal support and well as webinars and online toolkits.

Throughout the same time frame, NASEF is running esports tournaments with competition across North America in League of Legends, Fortnite, Smash Ultimate, Rocket League, and League of Legends ARAM. Students can participate in all these tournaments completely free. NASEF embeds learning into all aspects of club and team participation, offering teams across North America free coaching, team support, and educational connections.

Participation in NASEF is free. High schools and community organizations for teens are encouraged to activate a NASEF Club and gain access to workshops, clinics, and Coaches Corner sessions, plus enter any combination of tournaments or creative challenges that they choose. All high school teams are encouraged to form a NASEF Club even if they belong to other leagues, so that they can access the variety of free educational resources for esports enthusiasts.
 

About the North America Scholastic Esports Federation 

The North America Scholastic Esports Federation is working to ensure that ALL students possess the knowledge and skills needed to be society’s game changers: educated, productive, and empathetic individuals. NASEF is on a mission to provide opportunities for ALL students to use esports as a platform to acquire critical communication, collaboration, and problem-solving skills needed to thrive in work and in life. The Federation’s core values are intertwined through all aspects of education and play: learning, opportunity, community, diversity, and respect. 

Under the Samueli Foundation’s leadership, the Federation is led by partners from the Orange County Department of Education, OC STEM Initiative, Connected Camps, Connected Learning Lab, UCI Esports, UCI Henry Samueli School of Engineering, and the UCI Bren School of Information & Computer Science. 

Learn more at the NASEF website. Members of the press can find videos, infographics, and leadership profiles in the online press room. Join online conversations on Twitter @NASEFgg for esports updates and @NASEFedu for our education news, on Facebook and Instagram, and see matches streamed live on our Twitch channel. 

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