E67 – How to Create Esports Environments That Benefit Everyone

🎮 In this episode of Tech Lasso, Mark and guests Alan Ward, Kevin Dilts, and Ben Anh, engage in a roundtable discussion on esports environments. Learn about the key components of setting up an esports lab, various funding opportunities, and real-life success stories. Whether you're an educator, administrator, or esports enthusiast, this episode is packed with power-ups and hacks to help you bring esports to your school. The discussion concludes with actionable steps to kickstart successful esports programs. 

👥 Guests 

Allen Ward, a Manager with LACOE Technology Services, has 22 years of tech support experience. His career at LACOE began as a student intern and progressed through roles like computer technician, AV engineer, and support supervisor. Allen's team handles projects of all complexities, focusing on resolving tech issues to benefit Los Angeles County students. He holds a B.A. from UC Berkeley and proudly cheers, "Go Bears!"

LinkedIn | Ward_allen@lacoe.edu 

Kevin Diltz is the Esports Solutions Manager at Extron, a global audiovisual systems manager.  Prior to joining the Extron team, Kevin worked at both PlayVS and Generation Esports which are two leading national high school and middle school league organizations.  He has helped hundreds of schools and districts start their esports programs from the ground up. 

Extron Esports Grant | LinkedIn | kdiltz@extron.com 

Ben Ahn is the Chief Operations Officer at DI Technology.  He leads the esports projects division, providing esports solutions. Ben is from a Korean background and was born and raised in Brazil.  Due to his unique upbringing, he speaks 4 languages and has visited over 50 countries during his career in technology.  

ben@ditechnology.com | 657-532-3096 

🎙️ Tech Lasso Esports Episodes 

• E06 - Donna "BasicTaq" Walters: Esports, More Than Just Playing Video Games  
• E08 - Alan Sitomer: Why Students Need Coding Skills and Esports  
• E26 - An esports Conversation  
• E31 - Jihan Johnson and Esports  
• E34 Justin Coats – Frenzy Esports and Gaming for Skill and Community Building   
• E43 - Education Innovation Through STEM and E-Sports - A Conversation with Jesus Hernandez   
• E50 - Leverage That Esports Passion – Insights from Alvaro Brito and Compton Unified School District 
• E55 - Leveling Up Education: The Intersection of Esports and Learning 
• E60 - Empowering the Next Generation - Girls in STEM and Hackathons with Shirin Laor-Raz Salemnia  
• E62 🎮 Leveling Up: Learning and Leadership in Esports 🏆  

🔗 Links 

ELOP: Extended Learning Opportunity Program (After School) 

CTE: Career Technical Education 

California Proposition 28 - Arts and Music Funding 

Extron EdTech Grants  

Audiovisual (AV) “refers to all the sight and sound elements that come together to create the esports experience for both players and spectators” Gemini (6/2024) 

RGB: Red, Green and Blue lighting “ RGB can enhance game immersion, reduce eye strain, enhance accuracy, provide aesthetics, and enhance gameplay.” 

ROI: Return on Investment “Esports provides institutions a return on investment in student interest, recruitment, and retention.” 

Leveling Up Learning with Scholastic Esports in Los Angeles County, UCLA (April 2024) 

🎥 Production Notes    

The views expressed in the podcast are those of the presenters and may not be endorsed by the Los Angeles County Office of Education or the respective organizations of the guests.        

We would love to hear from you @ 📧 edtech@lacoe.edu 

Music, Media and AI: Canva, Chatgpt, Claude.ai, Google Gemini, MusicFX & StableAudio  

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