On noon March 30, Dr. Jamie Dessart, Professor of English at Waynesburg University, will be hosting a panel of women who work within the gaming industry. The panel will be held on MS Teams, so everyone is encouraged to join and can do so through MyConnect.

The panel will include: Aurverin Morrow, Esports Brand Manager for Hi-Rez Studios; Freya Marquardt, Rocket League Coach and Graphic Designer for Torrent and the WCBC; and Kate Dessart, Content Manager for Torrent Esports. They will be discussing how they got in the industry, their experiences and video games, of course.

Also, there will be a discussion on how their gender impacted them in the gaming industry. While the focus is on women, everyone regardless of gender will be able to further their knowledge about this field of work by listening to industry experts.

Dessart said that she wants this event to have viewers “start off with an understanding that everyone is welcomed.”

One doesn’t have to be a gamer to have a career in the gaming industry, as there are a lot of career paths within this field to choose from. Graphic design, marketing, branding, social media, video and sports management are just a few examples that will be mentioned on the panel.

The purpose of this event is to inspire women who are interested in having a career in the gaming industry. This event is also a great opportunity to get them interested in the new esports program planned to launch in the fall of 2022.

“I have seen interest, thus far, from male and female students, which is fantastic,” Adam Jack, Director of Athletics said. “We have been working with an esports consultant for over a year, to assist us in everything from advertising to the actual set-up for the esports area. She has emphasized the growth of females in esports over the past few years.”