CIAA Partners with Cxmmunity to Spearhead Esports & Gaming Initiatives

LINCOLN UNIVERSITY, PA - The Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA), the nation's oldest historically black athletic conference, has partnered with Cxmmunity, an Atlanta-based nonprofit dedicated to increasing minority participation in the esports and video game industries.

The CIAA and Cxmmunity will work together to develop the conference's esports ecosystem through strategic partnerships with industry leaders that focus on providing educational opportunities and career pathways for its students and membership.

"We're thrilled to be partnering with Cxmmunity to help provide access to resources within the esports and gaming industry," said CIAA Commissioner Jacqie McWilliams. "Survey results from our campuses show a high level of interest in this sector at every level and our goal is to further establish pipelines throughout the STEM field that offer career opportunities, scholarships, and educational programming for our students and member institutions."

Additionally, through its HBCU Esports League, Cxmmunity will provide competitive gaming opportunities for CIAA membership, offering participants the chance to earn scholarships, while also assisting the conference with establishing its own branded esports programming.

"We are extremely excited to partner with the CIAA to bring esports and educational opportunities to their member institutions. Our goal is to foster a community that encourages competitive esports matches and assists the CIAA in developing an esports framework that exposes their students to scholarships, internships, and full-time jobs," says Ryan Johnson, Founder and Executive Director of Cxmmunity.

A relationship initially fostered through conference member Johnson C. Smith University, the CIAA and Cxmmunity partnership is the first in a series of developments to introduce esports and gaming as a conference initiative. Earlier this year, JCSU became the first historically black college and university to offer an Esports and Gaming Management program to undergraduate students.

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 Cxmmunity and its mission, visit https://www.cxmmunity.co/. 

About the CIAA

Founded in 1912, the Central Intercollegiate Athletic Association (CIAA) is the first and longest running, African American athletic conference in the U.S. and one of the most recognized conferences in Division II. The CIAA conducts 14 championships attended by more than 150,000 fans from around the country. In 2020, the conference celebrated the special 75th anniversary of its Championship Basketball Tournament - an event that has become a must-see in the African American community. The Basketball Tournament has been honored as a Champion of Economic Impact in Sports Tourism by Sports Destination Management, the leading publication with the largest circulation of sports event planners and tournament directors in the sports tourism market, for both 2018 and 2019. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the CIAA is governed by the Presidents and Chancellors of its 12 member-institutions: Bowie State University, Claflin University, Elizabeth City State University, Fayetteville State University, Johnson C. Smith University, Lincoln University of Pennsylvania, Livingstone College, Saint Augustine's University, Shaw University, Virginia State University, Virginia Union University, and Winston-Salem State University. Chowan University is an associate member in football and women's bowling.  For more information on the CIAA, visit theciaa.com, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter and Instagram.

About Cxmmunity

Cxmmunity, pronounced "Community," is a non-profit that is focused on increasing minority participation in esports and the video game industry. Founded to eliminate barriers to entry and underrepresentation in esports, Cxmmunity provides minorities living in underserved communities with the opportunity to participate within the gaming industry by sharpening STEM and business management skills. For more information about Cxmmunity, visit www.cxmmunity.co.

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Lincoln University, the nation’s first degree-granting Historically Black College and University (HBCU), educates and empowers students to lead their communities and change the world. Lincoln offers a rigorous liberal arts education to a diverse student body of approximately 2,200 men and women in more than 35 undergraduate and graduate programs.