PlayVS, (pronounced Play Versus), the leading amateur esports platform and operator of official state high school leagues across the United States and Canada, is celebrating its fifth anniversary of its continued partnerships with the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC), Maine Principal's Association (MPA) and Massachusetts School Administrators' Association (MSAA). The CIAC, MPA and MSAA remain at the forefront of one of the fastest-growing sports in the U.S. and these extended partnerships furthers PlayVS’ mission to bring officially sanctioned esports leagues nationwide. This announcement follows the recent news that the Vermont Principals Association (VPA) would partner with PlayVS for the first time this Fall, further solidifying PlayVS as a leader in scholastic esports in the Northeast.
Since originally partnering back in 2018, PlayVS and the CIAC, MPA and MSAA have been early adopters and leaders in committing to providing students across the states of Connecticut, Massachusetts and Maine with premier esports programs. The introduction of esports has opened up an entirely new opportunity to high school students across the three states to compete in an accessible and inclusive activity. Many of the students who participate have never before been involved in extracurricular activities. From this opportunity, students have benefited from the critical teamwork, communication and leadership skills that esports foster. PlayVS has provided these schools with a structured, competitive and rewarding experience over its five-year span, helping grow the number of PlayVS participants to almost 600 schools and nearly 9,000 students in the three states alone.
"We are excited to celebrate our fifth year of partnership with the CIAC, MPA and MSAA, and look forward to continuing to provide students across New England the chance to represent their schools while playing their favorite esports and opening the door for scholarship opportunities that weren’t possible only a few years ago," said Aakash Ranavat, Chief Business Officer at PlayVS. "Through this continued collaboration, we have successfully fostered a sense of community, teamwork and inclusion among students in the states, and we remain committed to expanding esports’ reach in the years to come."
“The CIAC could not be more proud to continue its long-standing relationship with PlayVS, equipping students around the state of Connecticut with a distinctive and captivating experience that’s unlike anything offered previously,” said Cherese Odukwe, Director of Student Activities for CAS-CIAC. "This collaboration has not only established an environment of inclusivity for students with diverse backgrounds and abilities, but has also unveiled new avenues for them to explore their interests and develop valuable skills that will help support their future career aspirations."
By partnering with PlayVS, Connecticut, Maine and Massachusetts high schools have access to the most exciting and popular game titles, a world-class platform and customer support team, with the ability to earn college scholarships. Additionally, PlayVS has been able to give away $750,000 in scholarships nationally and over $118,000 in free hardware and software to participating CIAC, MPA and MSAA schools.
Enrollment for the fall season is open now through September 22, 2023. Schools can register their teams for the upcoming season by signing up at PlayVS.com.
To learn more about PlayVS, visit https://playvs.com/.
To access the PlayVS media kit, click here.
ABOUT PLAYVS
PlayVS (pronounced Play Versus) is North America's leading high school esports platform. We are a single community where players come together to compete, fans gather to spectate, and coaches manage their programs. The company is the official high school esports partner to the NFHS Network, the Special Olympics, and 36 state and regional organizations in the U.S. and Canada to offer officially sanctioned high school esports leagues.
ABOUT CIAC
The Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC) is a private, not-for-profit, 501(c)3 organization. Founded in 1921 following a proliferation of unregulated high school athletic activities, the CIAC was established to mitigate the unsafe and abusive practices that were prevalent in high school sports in Connecticut. The CIAC was formed by a group of high school principals who, in the absence of any other groups or organizations, stepped forward to protect the interests of student-athletes. Since its inception in 1921, the CIAC has worked to develop, maintain and enforce rules of eligibility and conduct that insure equitable athletic competition among Connecticut’s secondary schools. The CIAC serves as the sole governing body for inter-scholastic athletic activities in Connecticut.
ABOUT MSAA
The Massachusetts School Administrators' Association serves the needs of elementary, middle level and high school administrators of Massachusetts. The basic mission of the MSAA is to promote quality educational opportunities by organizing and facilitating statewide student activities, providing a voice for educational leaders in the state to encourage collaboration among members through networking, also acting as an ongoing provider of pertinent and timely information to our members.
ABOUT MPA
The MPA builds partnerships that provide a network of resources, exemplars of leadership and a culture of collaboration for the benefit of all school community members. The MPA is a private, educational, nonprofit corporation with voluntary membership that is comprised of two distinct divisions: the Division of Professional Activities and the Division of Interscholastic Activities. Learn more at mpa.cc.
