HANOVER, Mass. ─ Uptime Esports is proud to announce the partnership with the New England Institute of Technology to bring the first competitive athletics program to the school in the New England Tech Tigers Esports program. Uptime and New England Tech have been working on bringing esports to the university since the summer of 2021, laying the groundwork to launch the program in the fall semester of 2021 and begin competition in the spring of 2022.
Esports has been popular in the New England Tech community in the recent past and the goal of the university was to elevate it to a whole new level with help from Uptime Esports. “New England Institute of Technology’s esports program has been significantly elevated through our association with Uptime Esports. Uptime helped the university transform esports from an important student activity to a robust multi-tiered competitive and recreational program in a very short time,” said Alan Resnick, Vice President for Strategic Planning at New England Tech.
“Having the opportunity to bring the first competitive teams to New England Tech in the form of an esports program was exciting to say the least,” said Tim Schneider, co-founder of Uptime Esports. “Being able to take our years-long partnership to the next level and lend our expertise to NEIT to help them broach the esports space was a privilege. Working together, step-by-step and seeing the program come to life with immense community support is amazing and our goal is to give them a competitive program to be proud of for years to come.”
Through years of expertise in the gaming arena, Uptime was able to assist in building the program from the ground up and had a hand in everything from the hiring of personnel, to the strategic planning for the launch to the marketing and graphics design to promote the program and outfit players. “Uptime’s coaching, marketing, and graphic design staff have performed with relevant expertise, efficiency, professionalism and enthusiasm. The university looks forward to the imminent launch of our inter-collegiate tournament play and to establishing a winning culture, to enhancing the NEIT student experience, and advancing alumni support,” said Resnick.
One of the main ways Uptime and NEIT strove to establish a winning culture and enhance the student experience was with the hiring of Eric “EMPERIC” Medeiros as the first head coach of the program. Medeiros, a 2020 NEIT graduate, returns to the school after over five years of experience in the esports industry to head up the brand new program. “As an NEIT Alum, I am proud to return as the inaugural head coach for the development of the NEIT Esports program,” said Medeiros. Competing for multiple professional organizations in many different game titles, he brings a wealth of experience to the Tech Tigers Esports program and can relate on a unique level as an NEIT graduate himself. Medeiros went on to say: “I am committed to developing a program that once upon a time, when I was a student, I would have loved to be a part of. With NEIT Esports, we strive to develop all three pillars of a successful program: Competition, Club, and Community – so every student, no matter their esports origin, can participate and have a great experience.”
The esports program received a huge welcome on campus from staff and students alike at the very start in the fall with program launch events to meet the coach and experience the Esports Center. Uptime and New England Tech did not want to lose the community built around esports and gaming and as such, continue to put a large emphasis on community events. Hosting watch parties, assisting students in running weekly competitions for Super Smash Bros. and League of Legends, impromptu events for big game launches are just a few of the ways that the competitive program stays in touch with the recreational group that is the base and group around which the program operates.
As tryouts for the Call of Duty, Rocket League and League of Legends teams were posted to the student body, over 70 students put their name in to be a part of one of the first competitive teams to be fielded by the university in any capacity. The field was eventually narrowed down to the best at the university and teams are now set to compete in the National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) Starleague, National Esports Collegiate Conference (NECC), and the College Call of Duty League (CCL) for the spring season.
Since the Esports program was announced near the end of September 2021, all marketing channels have received consistently high engagement from the NEIT student body and beyond. In the time since launch, all NEIT Esports social media accounts have risen to some of the most successful in the collegiate space when it comes to content interactions and look to only improve as the tandem of NEIT and Uptime Esports work together to support the teams as they begin their inaugural seasons.
About Uptime Esports
Uptime Esports is a premier esports and education center based in Hanover, Massachusetts. Uptime offers many different programming options from competitive esports club teams to S.T.E.A.M. based classes. They also partner with organizations to help build out esports programs at all levels including elementary, middle, high school and college using their expertise and a holistic esports curriculum developed with NEIT that includes teaching on health and wellness, nutrition, financial literacy and other topics. See more about Uptime Esports partnerships at uptimeesports.gg/partnerships/.
About New England Institute of Technology
New England Institute of Technology is a private, non-profit technical university and is accredited by the New England Commissions on Higher Education. Founded in 1940, the university offers more than 50 undergraduate and graduate degree programs, including digital game design, video production and course work in esports management, focusing on a proven combination of technical expertise coupled with experiential learning. Visit www.neit.edu and follow news of the university on Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Instagram and LinkedIn.
