Southeast Missouri State University (SEMO) have announced plans to develop a 24/7 esports venue for students, opening in their fall semester in 2019.
A 1,500-square-foot space currently used as a computer lab will be renovated to feature 6 PCs to facilitate in-house tournaments. Various consoles and a 70-inch TV will also be available for students to view any ongoing matches. The space will also be open 24/7 allowing for students to practice, compete or just have fun at any time of the day.
Dr. Bruce Skinner, Vice President for student life at SEMO said: “This is of interest to our students, we are going to help students compete who want to be competitive. For those that don’t, we hope they find a connection with others. That is so important.
“The esports space comes after the creation of an esports club, that climbed to 60 members and integration into the university’s intramural program.”
The news follows on from Full Sail University’s announcement that they will be opening their news esports arena, called the Fortress next month. While SOMA’s announcement is not on the same scale as Full Sail’s it is still a step in the right direction for collegiate esports. We have seen more and more institutions in America take notice of esports, adding teams and facilities to their campus.
“We are going to help students compete who want to be competitive.”
Ahead of his appearance at #ESINYC last week, Joshua Kell, CEO of eSports Integration, told us how he has been helping the growth of collegiate esports in America. You can catch up with that interview here.
Esports Insider says: Collegiate esports are extremely important in enabling young prospects as they balance education and gaming. It’s refreshing to see universities support esports by giving them more facilities to play and improve, and we hope to see more steps like this in the future.