This Columbia camp gives girls a pathway toward careers in esports, coding

If one was near the Game Hut on the campus of Columbia College prior to 2015, they may have heard the clacking of cleats as soccer players donned their gear for a practice or a game.

One can still hear clacking coming from the Game Hut, but this time it is the quick patter of keyboard keys or mouse clicks as those inside may be playing Rocket League , Valorant or some other team-based video game.

Over the week of July 22, it was filled with young women in sixth through 12th grade as they participated in the annual Girls Who Game day camp at Columbia College, which got its start in 2017. It has steadily grown since then. Camp participants learn how to code their own games, attend lectures by those working in the gaming industry and network with them, play video games and, as of last year, play a Dungeons and Dragons campaign.

The Game Hut served as the soccer locker rooms up until 2015 when new ones were opened at R. Marvin Owens Field. The next year it was developed into the home for Columbia College's esports program and team, and in 2021 underwent a complete renovation adding new gaming stations, chairs and equipment.

Keeping it fresh for returning campers

Those participating in the weeklong camp come from Columbia and its neighboring communities. It even had prior participants from New York, as well as internationally.

International participation was when much of the camp was held virtually due to the COVID-19 pandemic, said event co-coordinator Lindsay Zeiter, who also is an esports assistant coach and online programs coordinator for Columbia College. Her right hand is Katelynn Case, the other camp co-coordinator, who also is an instructional technologist for the college.

One local avid gamer, Riley Salladay, was participating in the Career Awareness Related Experience program through the City of Columbia, when she learned about the camp because a supervisor was a guest speaker there. Salladay was encouraged to participate by her supervisor, who described it as a good opportunity.

"This could get you into esports, or just the technology world," Salladay said, relaying what her supervisor said, and adding she has learned database management through the CARE program. "Here, I have met other people, which is nice, and I have started playing Valorant. I have learned how to pursue what I want to do through the guest speakers."

While not currently on an esports team at her high school, Salladay now is considering joining the team after the camp, she said, adding she likes the teamwork involved with esports.

"I'd be nothing without my team. They are great people," she said.

Among returning campers is Kieley White, who last year had no coding experience, and this year is getting a better handle on it, she said.

"Last year I didn't really enjoy the game design part, but it has gotten easier now once you know what you are doing," she said, adding she plays Rocket League most and would like to try to be an esports professional.

She may also try out game music development, which is one of the skills taught during the course of the camp.

"We used Beep Box. It was pretty fun to do," White said, adding the best part of the camp has been hanging out with friends and getting to make connections with others.

Zeiter and Case work to make each year a little different so multi-year participants can build on what they previously learned, Zeiter said.

"We want to cater to all skill levels, and so, our campers who have come in the past, we make sure we have new content to provide. We also are making sure to cater to those who have never come before. The goal for us is to be that bridge, so those who are interested and they want to do it (as a career), that is a big part of what we do," she said.

Coding sessions create story-driven games, which also teach HTML, a skill that can be used across many different professional sectors, Case said. Coding sessions also include character creation and music development, she added.

The addition of DnD last year meant an ability for campers to develop their leadership and life skills, Case said. It also is an opportunity for participants to have a different form of interaction away from the screens for a bit, added Zeiter.

Bringing industry professionals to the camp

There are two aspects to Columbia College's ability to welcome gaming industry professionals to the camp. One is simply being aware of who is in the industry and submitting requests and the other is basically having an industry insider as one of the college's esports coaches, Calvin Draper.

"Many of the women who are in the industry are really excited to see something grassroots like this is happening, and they are more than willing to give a little bit of their time to share their own story, their expertise and enable those who are interested in following in their foot steps," Zeiter said, adding Draper was a professional Overwatch player when younger. "He's already been in the pro scene and I believe his brother worked for Riot Studios. So, (Calvin) was already on the inside and connected us with two of the speakers we had this week."

The industry professional lectures help to show campers that there is not a linear path in the gaming industry, Case said.

"That is what we emphasize. You don't have to have this step, this step, this step. You can get this far and decide you want to circle back around or go so far and branch out. It's about building confidence and showing there is no one path to entry in this field," she said.

History of Girls Who Game camp

Back in 2017, a member of the college's board of trustees noticed the co-ed esports team included no women, Zeiter said.

From 2023: Girls Who Game at Columbia College introduces girls to competitive gaming, game design

"So they asked the question, 'What can we do about this? How can we make the community more welcoming and make it more obvious that our goal is to be more inclusive'" she said, adding she connected with the camp after its first year once she heard the event was taking place. "I am a very avid gamer, so as soon as I heard something that was going on at my work that was gaming-related, I threw my hat in the ring."

The answer to the "What can we do" question was the camp, which in 2017 only was a one-day event. It became a week-long camp the following year. Many of the activities from the first-ever camp still are part of subsequent camps.

"The morning activities were spent on game design to tie (STEAM) activities into it. The afternoon was spent competitive gaming," Zeiter said, noting one of the many purposes of the camp is givin participants an insight into science, technology, engineering, arts and math careers.

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Charles Dunlap covers local government, community stories and other general subjects for the Tribune. You can reach him at cdunlap@columbiatribune.com or @CD_CDT on X, formerly Twitter. Subscribe to support vital local journalism.

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: This Columbia camp gives girls a pathway toward careers in esports, coding