LOS ANGELES, May 22, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Riot Games -
publisher of League of Legends today announced as part of this
week's college championship celebration the formation of the Riot
Scholastic Association of America - the governing body for Riot's
college and high school esports activity.
A board of advisors made up of leaders from throughout college
esports will work with a dedicated Riot team to level up Riot's
continued support for scholastic esports, including scaling
competitive operations, creating a more inclusive student
community, and aligning with the goals of schools.
The inaugural RSAA Advisory board will consist of:
Mark Deppe - Director
of Esports, University of California,
Irvine; Commissioner, NASEF
A.J. Dimick - Director of Esports Operations,
University of Utah
Erin Harvego - Vice
President of Marketing, Big Ten Network
Carolayne Henry - Senior
Associate Commissioner, Governance & Legal Affairs/SWA -
Mountain West Conference
Kurt Melcher - Executive
Director of Esports, Robert Morris
University; Executive Director of Esports, Intersport
T.L. Taylor - Director of
Research, AnyKey.org; Professor - MIT
"When we established the first varsity college esports program
in the country [at Robert Morris
University] in 2014, I was largely inspired to do so because
of League of Legends," said Kurt
Melcher, Executive Director of Esports at Intersport.
"As an increasing number of high schools and universities across
the country build esports programs, it is important that a broad
range of co-curricular perspectives are included to help shape the
future of campus esports. Riot's scholastic team is committed
to creating great opportunity and establishing a more inclusive
environment for all students. I look forward to expanding my
efforts through the RSAA Board of Advisors."
Riot's current scholastic team will operate under the RSAA
effective immediately. The College League of Legends season and
championship will be governed by the RSAA team, in tandem with
existing operations partners. The RSAA team will work closely with
the Board of Advisors on initiatives that extend and grow the
footprint of college esports.
"The formation of the RSAA represents Riot's long term
commitment to League of Legends, and it's development as an
inclusive, multi-generational, college and high school sport," said
Michael Sherman, Head of College for
the RSAA. "As League enters its 10th year, we've never been
more committed to growing the ecosystem that supports it."
The announcement comes as Riot kicks off the 2019 League of
Legends College Championship - the largest college esports
championship in North America. For more information on the
RSAA visit: rsaa.riotgames.com - For more information on the
College Championship visit the Championship page or contact
Justin Kranzl (details below).
Contact:
Justin Kranzl
Head of Communications - NA
jkranzl@riotgames.com
(310) 429 5423
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SOURCE Riot Games