Students, alumni, staff, faculty and fans of Alabama State University gathered together in the John Garrick Hardy Center to witness the ribbon cutting of the Gaming and E-Sports Laboratory and Recreational Center on March 8, 2023.
The Gaming and E-Sports Laboratory features more than $90,000 in state-of-the-art gaming and recreational equipment, designed for the enjoyment of students. The gaming equipment was donated to the university by the Black College Gaming Association (BCGA), which specializes in esports and gaming education, producing professional gaming summits and conferences, connecting student talent with top companies for internship and career opportunities and sourcing corporate partners for scholarship and mentorship opportunities.
The Recreational Center, which at one time was on the opposite end of the Hardy Center, is filled with maple wood card tables, three pool tables, table tennis and table football machines.
According to the university’s Director of Development Audrey Parks, the furniture in the recreational room was paid for by the Home Depot Retool Your School campaign, which granted the university $95,000 in 2021 to install the new furniture in the Hardy Center.
Earlier this week the Office of Student Life held a mixer to raise awareness for the campaign among students, so they could come out and vote for Alabama State University to be among the historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) selected to get a grant for campus renovation.
Malinda Swoope, Ph.D., the new vice president for Student Affairs and Enrollment Management, was the first to address the crowd.
“Today we are here to celebrate a great occasion,” Swoope said. “That would be the ribbon cutting for the university’s new gaming and esports laboratory. Also today, we are celebrating the re-opening of the university’s recreational center. Both the laboratory and the center would not have been made possible without buzz from various companies, and the efforts of individuals who were committed to working diligently to make these resources available for the students of Alabama State University. It is my hope that the opening of the gaming and esports laboratory as well as the recreational center will further enhance the students’ engagement and experience while here at Alabama State University.”
Bennie Cooks, director of External Operations talked about the emergence of the gaming industry.
“Providing opportunities for students to be engaged, and to enhance the overall student experience is indeed important,” he said. “The research findings are unequivocable. Student learning assistance is strongly associated with student engagement, including student center extracurricular activities,” Cooks said. “It’s important to note that the video gaming industry has taken the world by storm. Esports focuses on competitive video gaming where one side loses and the other side wins. From being a casual hobby decades ago, video gaming has now evolved into another genre of esports.”
The idea of the university placing a gaming and esports laboratory on campus was conceived by Keshia Walker, the founder and chairwoman of the Black Collegiate Gaming Association (BCGA). Walker has been gaming for decades, and she still partakes in the hobby to this day. It was her passion and observation of the lack of representation for Black people in the gaming industry that pushed her to try to make influential changes.
“I want to thank God for this opportunity,” Walker said. “I want to thank my mother who, as a single mom, raised me and showed me that anything is possible. This is an amazing moment because for two years, I called Dr. Ross (President Quinton T. Ross, Jr., Ed.D.), who I have had the pleasure of knowing for two decades, and I asked if he would be willing to make history with me as I embarked on finding and creating an opportunity to get more Blacks and women of color in a space that is so underrepresented when it comes to things that matter. We’re talking about a $200 hundred billion industry, where less than 3% of that industry is Black when it comes to people who work in the industry, and less than half of them are women of color.”
The gaming room is meant to ultimately be a center of fun and relaxation for students, so it only makes sense that a few were asked to share their perspective.
“I am so excited to be witnessing this wonderful contribution that ASU has done for its students,” said Trint Martinez, executive vice president of the 2022-23 Student Government Association (SGA) and a junior political science major. “This project has given many students the chance to express themselves in ways they know best. It’s a chance for students to get out of their comfort zones and express their interests in gaming and esports. This project not only provides a space to play video games, but it also allows students to actively gain knowledge in science, engineering and mathematics while analyzing data. In general, I just want to thank Alabama State University administrators, faculty and staff for providing this awesome opportunity.”
Martinez was not the only one grateful for the new gaming room and the wide spectrum of opportunities it could bring. James Abrams, a freshman theater major and inaugural member of the esports gaming team, was practically bouncing with excitement.
“Today is a great day for me and everyone around me,” Abrams said. “I have people I can go to. For me, this game lab is much more than a place. It’s a moment of time. I can hang with my friends, I can enjoy the time we have together. To say that I’m excited is an understatement.”
The room erupted into applause after the ribbon was cut, and music began to play from the speakers. People mingled and celebrated the new recreational area that would hopefully benefit students and provide a place of comfort and relaxation from studying, which can at times be stressful.
Senior Mashone Robinson, who attended the event, had a good time. “It was a good event. I think it’s good to have a ceremony so students will know what it’s all about. I think it will be a good thing for students to do stuff in their free time instead of our students going out and trying to do things in the dorms.”
“This will be a great way for our students to come together, have fun and meet new friends,” said sophomore Jordan Johnson. “It’s a great change to Alabama State University.”