Information Systems Student Leads Esports Club
Posted: January 09, 2020 | Author: Kierstin Pitcher-Holloway | Read Time: 2 minutes
When information systems major Jaeger Christensen started his education at Southern Utah University there was no such thing as the Thunderbird Esports club, but that didn’t stop Christensen from recognizing the possibilities the SUU community presented. Founded in fall 2018, the Thunderbird eSports club is now one of the fastest-growing clubs on campus.
“I saw a lot of potential here at SUU because there wasn’t an esports scene,” said Christensen. "Just around this time the University of Utah announced that they would be giving scholarships out for kids to come and play esports teams, and I thought that could be us someday.”
Since it’s beginning, the club has created a whole new social scene at SUU and provided students interested in competitive video gaming a place where they can go to make friends. As he built the Thunderbird Esports club from the ground up, Christensen was able to receive support from a few advisors but soon realized that most of the responsibilities fell on his own shoulders.
“I did a lot,” said Christensen. “Scheduling, setting up presidencies, running meetings, making sure the club runs well and resolving conflicts in the club. I really wanted this to take off and when we started to get support it was really evidenced to me that the more effort I put in, the more that this was going to become.”
All these are standard responsibilities of club presidents, but Christensen has gone above and beyond what is expected of him, by reaching out to different sponsors, leading to the growth and success of the club. Despite only being a year old the club has over 100 members and has hosted multiple gaming events including one sponsored by Red Bull.
Christensen has been able to learn leadership and communication skills through his experience as the esports club president, as well as learning more about business while working with sponsors and developing management skills while structuring the clubs organization.
He believes that these skills will be able to benefit him professionally in the future, but for now, his goals are focused on the Thunderbird Esports club.
“One of my biggest goals is to show the value of an esports program,” said Christensen. “There is just so much I do, I live, breath and eat esports right now. Trying to organize a 100 plus people takes a lot of effort, but it’s really rewarding when you see it all come together.”
When he graduates Christensen plans on pursuing a career in database design or systems administration.
Students looking for a competitive gaming environment, a good time, or simply wanting to make new friends, can attend the Thunderbird Esport club’s weekly meeting in the Student Center Living Room every Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Learn more about the Esports Club at SUU.
Tags: Clubs Student Affairs
