The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), the nation’s oldest historically black athletic conference, has partnered with Stay Plugged IN (SPIN), a Charlotte-based esports recruiting platform geared towards helping esports athletes find college scholarships.
The CIAA and SPIN will work together to develop community recruiting opportunities focused on promoting esports scholarships for high school and transfer students that serve as a pipeline for CIAA institutions working to establish and maintain their esports programs. Both organizations will also work collaboratively on developing content that educates students and their families on the importance and value of the conference’s membership and their esports programs while highlighting scholarship and career opportunities that exist within the CIAA, SPIN, and throughout collegiate esports and gaming.
“I continue to be proud about the CIAA aligning with partners like Stay Plugged IN. Providing access and opportunities to high school students and career opportunities for our current students is exciting,” said CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams. “As our conference continues to establish itself within collegiate esports and gaming, partnerships such as this one will be vital to the long-term sustainability of this initiative for our membership.”
Additionally, SPIN and its affiliated professional esports team, the Charlotte Phoenix, will offer a select number of internship opportunities to students from CIAA institutions looking to gain experience within the esports and gaming industry.
“We are incredibly honored and excited to partner with the CIAA as their recruiting arm for Esports. While we always strive to identify the top esports athletes across multiple game titles, we are cognizant of the fact that esports can also drive upward mobility to college and beyond,” said Stay Plugged IN Managing Director, Rick Suarez. “To be able to work alongside the CIAA to help foster these initiatives really helps drive home our goal of ensuring accessibility to all. We look forward to continuing to build programs and events with the CIAA that will have an impact for this and future generations.”
For the latest information on the CIAA, visit theciaa.com. You can also like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram. To learn more about Stay Plugged IN and its mission, visit https://espin.gg/.