EDITOR’S NOTE: This is Part I of a two-part series.
MANSFIELD — Nick Boller’s classroom buzzed with activity. The flick of controllers and chatter from middle and high schoolers filled the computer lab.
The room’s twenty computers, nine TVs and two projectors were all occupied. Students selected from dozens of games, from Just Dance to Spiderman, and played on XBOX 360s, Playstations and even a Nintendo 64.
During the day, Boller teaches cybersecurity courses for Mansfield City’s career technical program. But once a week after school, his classroom becomes a haven for gamers.
In between handing out games and troubleshooting equipment, Boller plopped quarters and dollar bills from students into a cashbox.
The teens selected their snack of choice from a cupboard stocked with crackers, candy and beef jerky sticks.
The profits, along with hand-me-down equipment donated by Boller and his friends, have sustained the Mansfield Gamer’s Club since he became the advisor about 15 years ago.
Mansfield City has had a gamer’s club for close to two decades, but the district is venturing into new territory next semester with esports.
Competitive video gaming, also known as esports, has grown in popularity over the last few years. Clubs and teams are popping up in K-12 schools and colleges across Ohio.
Mansfield Senior began offering an esports club last school year. In September, the school board voted to approve middle and high school esports as a school sport, complete with paid coaches.
The spring season starts in January.
Boller and Michael Alonzo, a teacher and gamer’s club advisor at the middle school, advocated for the change.
Alonzo barely paused for breath during his passionate pitch to the board.
“We want to foster camaraderie among artists and athletes, to get a legacy of inclusion and excellence in our program, expand our program to include more coaches and make esports a reputable staple sport program at our school,” he said.
“This is the ground level and we’re excited. This is the new frontier for us.”
How does esports work?
A non-profit called Esports Ohio coordinates middle and high school leagues, competitions and even state championships at no cost to schools.
Students compete during six-week seasons in the fall and spring. Most of the time, teams play from their home school rather than traveling for a competition.
Most middle and high school esports are played in teams of three to five players. Popular games include Fortnite, Rocket League, Super Smash Brothers, Mario Kart 8 and Minecraft.
Like with traditional athletics, students often meet for practice and competitions after class.
Mansfield isn’t the only local school adding esports as an extracurricular. According to its website, Esports Ohio has close to 200 member schools.
Other local schools on the list include Ashland, Buckeye Central, Colonel Crawford and Ontario.
Math teacher Jonathon Davis serves as the advisor for Lexington’s esports club. He currently oversees two virtual chess club teams.
“This is our first year in esports,” he said. “In the spring, we are going to try and add the Nintendo Switch game Super Smash Brothers.
“A lot of my students play that game, so I think I can make at least a couple 5-member competitive teams to play in the spring esports season.”
Pioneer Career and Technology Center is in its fourth esports season, according to club advisor John Yohe.
“This season we have a Valorant team. In the past, we’ve run League of Legends Rocket League,” Yohe said. “We were even state champions in Hearthstone.”
Yohe currently streams matches on his YouTube channel so parents can watch their children compete. He plans to start broadcasting competitions on Twitch, a popular streaming service focused on video games, next semester.
Yohe said Pioneer’s esports roster typically hovers around ten to 15 students.
“Many of my players do sports back at their home school, but for some students, this is their only activity,” Yohe said.
Benefits of esports
Supporters of esports say there are research-backed benefits to playing video games.
Esports Ohio lists several: including improved critical thinking, hand eye coordination, visual acuity and problem-solving skills.
Yohe and Alonzo claim esports can boost interpersonal skills as well.
“Esports teaches them about leadership and teamwork and perseverance,” Yohe said. “Handling losses is as equally important as celebrating wins in a way that is courteous to the other team.
“(Players) always have to communicate and coordinate their plan and their strategies.”
Alonzo said another benefit is esports’ inclusivity — almost anyone can play, regardless of their gender or physical abilities.
“It attracts those who have often never competed in a sport and certainly those who hope to build a career in computer programming, video game design, graphic design, networking, cybersecurity,” Alonzo said.
Since Mansfield City now recognizes it as a board-approved sport, Boller said students will have to maintain academic eligibility to play. He and Alonzo say it’s another way to motivate kids.
“When we surveyed the students, over 90 percent of them had never competed in any other school sport,” Boller said. “By offering esports as an school sport, schools reach students who often are otherwise disengaged from the school community.”
“Esports in schools can transport these kids from the solitary world of digital gaming into the common space with other students. These otherwise uninvolved students now will join the ranks of their successfully involved peers. They will be more likely to be engaged during classes. More likely to graduate. More likely to aspire to higher education.”
Colleges offer esports clubs, scholarships
For a casual gamer, esports can simply be a way to relax and unwind. For others, it can spark an interest in game design, coding and other STEM careers.
Over the last five years, esports has become a retention and recruiting tool for colleges and universities.
More than 30 in Ohio offer an esports club or team. Colleges often promote new, top-of-line gaming lounges to prospective students — many of which were built in the last few years.
Some, like Ashland University, even offer scholarships.
“It is competitive, but we do have some students who have been scouted by colleges,” Yohe said.
“There’s an increasing number of scholarships available to them. I think esports shows them how they stack up against other players and in doing so it does help give them more realistic expectations than maybe they had coming in. . . For my players, they’re mainly looking for the college scholarship, not necessarily professional esports.”
A handful of colleges are even creating certifications and degrees around the world of esports. Ohio’s Miami University offers a master of esports management. Tiffin University students can pursue a bachelor in business administration with a focus on esports management. At Ohio University, students can pursue a 19-credit hour esports certificate in one of three areas: sport management, game design or information technology.
“Colleges hand out scholarships for being good at games like Smash and Call of Duty. Why not capitalize on it?” said Jai’saun Harper, a student at Mansfield Senior.
“And there’s money to be found in it as a career now. A lot of game devs (developers) start off as fans of video games.”