Grays Harbor College Announces New Esports Program for Fall
Posted on: Jul, 21, 2020
Aberdeen, WA: Grays Harbor College announces a new esports program beginning September 2020. Esports is a type of organized, competitive video gaming that emphasizes teamwork, strategic thinking, reflexes and mechanical skill for two teams to compete against each other.
Over the past 3 years, a growing number of colleges began offering esports programs. Grays Harbor College joins two peer community colleges, Peninsula College and Centralia College, as well as the four-year schools like UW, WSU, WWU, PLU, and CWU. GHC’s program will hold four varsity teams, and two junior varsity teams across six gaming titles.
“I’m incredibly excited about the opportunity for our students to represent us at the national level,” said Ralph Hogaboom, Esports Manager at Grays Harbor College. “Esports offers opportunities for skill development in leadership, teamwork, graphic design & video editing, broadcast production, information technology, communications - there’s so much hands-on involvement happening here. And our esports players will have a brand-new state of the art gaming facility, with 12 high-end gaming computers, screens, and chairs.”
Grays Harbor College has named Ralph Hogaboom, who currently works as a system administrator in the Information Technology department, as the esports manager. Hogaboom has been a starter for several recreational league esports teams, was previously the sponsorship director for Minor League Esports, and has a certificate in Esports Management from University of California at Irvine.
“I’ve been a gamer my whole life, including doing some work designing games myself as a hobby. I’ve come to believe strongly in the importance of inclusive, diverse gaming spaces - we all play better without sexism, racism, bigotry, transphobia - all that toxicity.”
Grays Harbor College Esports has taken the “glhf” pledge from the Anykey Organization, a non-profit group dedicated to accessible and non-discriminatory gaming. The gaming acronym, “glhf” stands for “good luck, have fun”.
Grays Harbor College Esports teams will begin competition in multiple national leagues, including the National Junior College Athletic Association Esports, Collegiate Star League, PlayVS, TESPA, and National Association of Collegiate Esports. The four varsity teams and titles are League of Legends, Overwatch, Rocket League, and Super Smash Bros Ultimate. The two junior varsity teams and titles are Valorant and Fortnite. Players will have the opportunity to compete on more than one team.
Players signed for fall 2020 will be eligible for a $100 esports signing award, with the potential for additional scholarship awards provided the student continues participation and at the discretion of Grays Harbor College.
For more information and updates on Grays Harbor College’s esports program, visit ghc.edu/esports or contact Hogaboom at esports@ghc.edu or 360-538-4187.
Email: esports@ghc.edu
Website: https://www.ghc.edu/esports
Facebook: https://facebook.com/ghcesports
Twitch: https://twitch.tv/ghcesports
Twitter: https://twitter.com/ghcesports
Discord: https://ghc.edu/discord
Instagram: https://instagram.com/ghcesports