Eastern Michigan University’s Esports program plans to start a summer camp for high school and middle school students. In the camp, students will learn skills needed for esports and content creation related to esports. The camp is currently expected to begin in the summer of 2025.
Zach Lewis, the program coordinator for EMU’s Esports program, spoke about the decision to plan a summer camp for younger people. One factor contributing to the decision was a desire to use the Esports facility more and offer members of the local community the chance to use the facility.
“We have a cool thing that a lot of other people should be able to share, and that includes younger people," Lewis said. "We can do so in an educational way, which is pretty cool."
Lewis also discussed the benefits of Esports.
“The most important thing … is the idea of community and the idea of belonging … [the Esports] program gives [students] the opportunity to … find a home with other people,” Lewis said.
In addition to the upcoming summer camp, EMU Esports hosts an annual competition for high school and community college Esports teams called the EMU Esports Scholastic Invitational.
“It’s one of the few Local Area Network competition experiences the high school players will get in their time playing high school Esports, so it's … an interesting event,” Lewis said.
