The National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) is a nonprofit membership association organized by and on behalf of our member institutions.
What is NACE?
The National Association of Collegiate Esports (NACE) is a nonprofit membership association organized by and on behalf of our member institutions. Together, our members are developing the structure and tools needed to advance collegiate esports in the varsity space. We are collaborating to lay the groundwork in areas such as: Eligibility, Path to Graduation, and Competition & Scholarships. NACE is the only association of varsity esports programs at colleges and universities across the U.S.
- 170+ member schools
- 5,000+ student-athletes
- $16 million in esports scholarships and aid
- Annual national convention
- Private discord server (voice-over software) for athletic directors, coaches, and more
This is the Beginning.
NACE officially formed on July 28, 2016 at the first ever Collegiate Esports Summit held in Kansas City, MO. At that time only seven colleges and universities had varsity esports programs. Since then a rapidly growing number of institutions have launched varsity programming, with a current count of 170+ institutions. As of June 2019, over 94% of all varsity esports programs in the U.S. are members of NACE with an ever increasing number of schools exploring esports.
Member Schools 2018
Who are we?
Our leadership rests with our Board of Directors, administrators elected from our member institutions.
Board of Directors:
Ashley Jones
Park University
Chris Haskell
Boise State University
Eugene Frier
Texas Wesleyan University
James McGhee
Randolph – Macon College
Jim Carr
CEO of the NAIA
Joshua Young
Pennsylvania College of Technology
Kevin Reape
University of Missouri
Mike Glover
ECPI University
Samanga Amarasinghe
Bellevue University
Shaun Byrne
St. Clair College
Competition Council:
Adam Antor
Aquinas College
Joshua Buchanan
Ashland University
Aaron Shockley
Central Methodist University
Joseph Rudy
Coker College
Mike Jones
Drury University
Joshua Myers
ECPI University
Chad Smeltz
Harrisburg University
David Shapiro
Lebanon Valley College
Joey Gawrysiak
Shenandoah University
Trieu Lai
St. Clair College
Eligibility Enforcement Committee:
Stephen Arthur
ECPI University
James Franklin
Indiana Institute of Technology
Colin Graham
Davenport University
Logan Hermes
Concordia University – St. Paul
Ethan Sinclair
St. Clair College
Kevin Sweeney
Wayland Baptist University
Travis Yang
Ashland University
NACE Team:
Michael Brooks
Executive Director
Scott Harold
Vice President Information Technology
Patrick Ocampo
Director of Membership Sales and Services
Scott Rarden
Director of Business Intelligence
