The event will highlight the increased attention given to eSports at the high school and university level
On Tuesday, the Academic Esports Conference & Expo presented the official dates for its inaugural show. This event will welcome eSports presenters and a lineup of education representatives from school districts, colleges and the eSports industry. Hilton Chicago will be the onset of nearly 60 sessions that will be focused on five different areas, running from October 19-21. This conference targets those people looking to build eSports in their schools or improving what they already have, or who are simply looking to establishing network connections with experts in the area.
The areas of discussion during this conference will be Starting Up, Advanced Level, Academic Development, Technology/Infrastructure and Emerging Trends. This three-day event has speakers from the competitive video game industry lining up to participate, Kevin Hoang of Twitch, Matt Birris of Riot Games and William Collis of Team Genji. Additionally, this conference will have the participation of other eSports experts on the K-12 level, such as Jason Kirby of Generation Esports, as well as Kirsten Turner and Eric Monday of the University of Kentucky speaking on behalf of the college eSports competitions.
“It’s an amazing collection of thought-leaders and gaming experts for a first show,” says Chris Burt, Program Chair for the Academic Esports Conference & Expo. “We are especially proud to provide conference sessions that aren’t solely focused on esports play, but that have academic components tied to them. Esports has given our young people a world of opportunities beyond the games, and we want to be a conduit for helping foster those positive outcomes while inspiring conversation and sparking future success for the next generation.”
