The vision for varsity encompasses much more than people gaming on Cybertron Computers and wearing a Logitech Headset.
While gaming success is important, the program is also seen as way to provide extra-curricular activity and applied learning for students in disciplines across campus.
Travis Yang, hired in December as WSU’s Esports director, wants to build a program that follows that direction. As esports grows in popularity, the program is also a recruiting tool for high school students – Wichita Public Schools offer an esports program at the middle and high school levels.
“It was really cool in the interview process to hear him talk about his vision for what an esports program can be, because it really aligned one-to-one with things we were already talking about,” said Clay Stoldt, interim dean of the College of Applied Studies. “Esports is a lot more than just the varsity competition. Esports is a big part of student life. It can contribute to the student experience for a ton of our students. He had already grasped that vision.”