SMC Esports club
SMC Esports club members at Razer Game Fest
Josh Guillermo with Adam Lopez at LA Game Con Edu
SMC Esports club member Guillermo Cifuentes in action
SMC Esports club members playing at Razer Game Fest
SMC Esports club president Josh Gomez at Razer Game Fest II
SMC Esports president Josh Gomez at Club Row event
SMC Esports member Guillermo Cifuentes poses at Razer Game Fest
Already a billion-dollar global industry, esports continues to evolve in offering a spectrum of careers from journalism and broadcasting to coaching and event production — and Santa Monica College is priming students for success in the field’s many facets.
“Esports isn’t just about playing games,” notes Redelia Shaw, professor of Communication and Media Studies and a driving force behind SMC’s Esports Program. “It’s about creating content, managing teams, reporting on events and understanding the broader dynamics of the gaming ecosystem.”
This interdisciplinary focus is reflected in the program’s diverse offerings. In designing the curriculum, faculty members interviewed industry professionals about the skills needed for the field. Making that task easier is SMC’s proximity to major game-design companies such as Riot Games and Activision. “One of the things industry professionals expressed was that while it’s important to know the games, it’s more vital to know how the field functions,” Redelia notes. For example, she explains, “students need to learn how to put together teams, train them and manage them.”
And since those are functions shared by the SMC Athletics Department, the esports faculty recruited Head Football Coach Kelly Ledwith to add his expertise to the curriculum. Kelly, who describes his role as “small and growing,” teaches the courses Sports Management and Athletes and Leadership, which now bolster the curriculum. “Now we’re getting a lot more people joining the classes, looking at it from a completely different mindset and avenue,” Kelly says.
Esports are popular at the high school level, as well as with even younger students. Not only do kids enjoy playing them, but the games foster computer skills and teamwork — as well as problem-solving and strategic thinking. Beyond that, gaming experience can be beneficial in careers related to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), where those abilities are key.
“The local school district has esports teams, and we want to find those students who love doing this to get them working toward a college degree,” Kelly explains.
Join the Club
Redelia and Kelly also expect SMC’s competitiveness in esports to lead to more students playing as they learn. “Whatever their major, any student who wants to game is welcome to play and become part of the SMC Esports Club,” Redelia says. “We want to start competing against other community colleges and really capitalize on this program.”
Sophomore and SMC Esports Club President Joshua Gomez echoes Redelia and Kelly’s enthusiasm. He emphasizes the inclusivity of gaming, which provides opportunities for those unable to participate in traditional athletics. “SMC’s Center for Media & Design campus is doing a great job in including that community in their game-designing classes and courses,” he says.
As a first-generation college student, Joshua, 25, struggled with what he wanted to do in his career before coming to SMC. “I never thought that school was something for me,” he says. That feeling was compounded when he started off at a different college, where he didn’t feel supported. Instead, he built experience as a frontline supervisor at UPS, gaining managerial and operational experience.
When he decided to give higher education another chance, Joshua searched for colleges with high transfer rates to top universities. Naturally, SMC topped the list.
“We all want someplace to call home,” Joshua adds. “SMC has a lot of students who are international or from out of state, and still more who don’t have the luxury of having their own gaming equipment. I’m grateful to be the person to help them access the opportunity to enjoy their hobbies, play games or just communicate with each other. I think I have found my community through SMC.”
Fittingly, Joshua also works as a student ambassador at the SMC Welcome Center. As he pursues the Esports Program, he plans to transfer to UC Irvine or UCLA to continue building expertise in business and computer science, with the ultimate goal of starting his own gaming company.
“I want to understand what my developers, designers and artists go through to accommodate them in their hard work as we put out the best products we can,” Joshua says.
Building Partnerships
As they work to grow the Esports Program, SMC faculty members are reaching out to gaming companies for potential sponsorships and student internship opportunities. These collaborations aim to provide students with hands-on experience in the field while fostering connections to industry leaders.
As the Esports Program and club grow at SMC, plans are underway to add a dedicated space on the main campus to expand training and gaming opportunities for students. “Riot Games runs their tournaments in South Korea from Santa Monica, so we can certainly run initiatives on our main campus from the Center for Media & Design,” Redelia says.
The SMC Esports Club also competes in gaming
(opens in new window) against peers at other colleges and universities, winning first place in the Valorant Tournament in May 2024. The club will participate in the 2025 Los Angeles County Colleges with
Game Design and Esports Programs conference this May.
Redelia, Kelly and their colleagues are confident in the Esports Program’s future growth. “Everybody games now,” Redelia notes. “If you’re on a bus, you see Nana over there playing Candy Crush, right?”
As the program expands, Joshua has advice for its current and future students. “Everybody’s there to help you, so don’t be afraid to ask,” he says. “They’ve been in your shoes, and while they’ve achieved great things, they’re here to give back to the community.”
The SMC Esports Program isn’t just preparing students for the future of gaming — it’s helping them shape it.
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SMC in Focus Volume XI, Issue 2
Esports Advantage
SMC’s pioneering Esports Program instills the skills needed to become industry players in this burgeoning digital media arena. Read Article
AI for Educators
A new SMC course prepares educators from all disciplines to train their students in using artificial intelligence appropriately, effectively — and ethically. Read Article
Haute-to-Go at SMC
Produced annually by SMC’s Photography & Fashion Department, the LA Mode Fashion Show of today is practically a de rigeur rite of passage for aspiring designers at the College. Read Article
When Trauma Makes You Better
For 25 years Dorothy Chin has peeled back the layers of the human psyche to curious Corsairs. Since the pandemic, she’s discovered a new layer in her own mind—and it’s a gamechanger. Read Article
Bragging Rights
The SMC Foundation organizes a multi-day distribution drive for those affected by the LA fires. A journalism instructor elected regional director for National Association of Black Journalists. Read Article
Spider-Man, the Musical?
Ye Dyke’s first audition felt like a botched tryout reel from America’s Got Talent. But this student from Myanmar—who’d never been inside a theatre—wouldn’t let a first setback get in the way. Read Article