ESSEF Alumni Association
As our graduating seniors get ready to cross the stage, let’s ensure their esports journey continues. We are excited to launch the ESSEF Alumni Network — a new hub designed to help our former players stay connected and give back to the programs that shaped them. By uniting our graduates, this network will allow alumni to mentor current competitors, support new educational opportunities, and champion the growth of scholastic esports across New York State. Please pass this invite along to your seniors as they graduate!
Alumni Discord server: https://discord.gg/bMBt9hHUSg
ESSEF Alumni Association Google Form (if they’re not on Discord): https://forms.gle/
NYS High School Esports Showcase
From our partner VDO Gaming:
On Saturday, September 26, 2026, the 5th Annual New York State High School Esports Showcase returns to MVP Arena, bringing together high school esports programs from across the state for a full day of competition, student engagement, and program-building. Presenting Sponsor: MVP Health Care through the Innovation Partnership in collaboration with Albany County, NY. This Showcase is built to do more than crown champions. Esports is a modern platform for teamwork and leadership, digital literacy and media production, and real workforce development pathways for New York students. We are currently welcoming sponsors and community partners who want to align their brand with education, youth opportunity, and the future of tech and media careers in New York State.More information and registration will be available by the start of next school year.
ESSEF x PlayVS
As many of you may know, PlayVS has been undergoing some changes. One big change is that they are going to a payment model. To be clear, ESSEF titles will still be free this fall for participating schools. We are currently in conversation with PlayVS in regards to what future seasons may look like beyond this fall. PlayVS has been a solid partner for ESSEF and scholastic esports in New York. We are looking into other online platforms as well. We will try our hardest to ensure there is some version of “free to play” available for schools. We know money is tough for some schools and too many coaches go with low or no pay. Having free online play is an essential way to grow scholastic esports.
Please see information on our ESSEF @ NYC Event on the Home Page! In the meantime, do you have an event or ESSEF activity to share? Please feel free to let us know! We’ll do our best to promote it around the State.