Changing the Game: Women and Esports – Virtual Lunch and Learn

Dr. Katrina Adkins has been in education for 20 years. She has taught Kindergarten, 1st and 3rd Grade, 6th through 12th Grade computer science, as well as college. Katrina’s strong desire to integrate technology into her classroom resulted in a Masters in Instructional Technology and a Doctorate in Instructional Technology & Distance Education. She spent 7 years in administration as a Director of Technology as well as a Technology Coach.

Dr. Adkins has been featured at conferences and schools across the world and has authored dozens of educational technology whitepapers, books, journal articles, and blog posts.

Her professional passions include Leadership, Esports, Space Design, Coding and Computer Science, E-Parenting, and Student Voice. Personally, Katrina has two teenagers who keep her up to date on the challenges of living in a technologically advanced world.

Kathy Chiang is the Assistant Director of the esports department at the University of California, Irvine. She manages the UCI Esports Arena, oversees program staff, and leads key initiatives including training programs, outreach, summer camps, and operations for the UCI Esports Conference. She graduated from UCI with a B.S. in Computer Game Science after co-founding one of the largest clubs on campus, The Association of Gamers. Recognized for her work with the campus gaming community and collegiate esports space since 2011, she was brought on as a key advisor for shaping the new esports program in 2016.

 

 

Allison “Skybilz” Waters was born in Western New York and attended Penn State (BA-English) and St. Bonaventure (MA-English). She began streaming and speedrunning in September 2013 on Twitch.tv/Skybilz and has been Hosting for Games Done Quick since Jan 2015. In 2019, Allison competed in the MTG Arena Mythic Invitational in Boston, MA and almost obtained a top 16 finish. Also, she competed in Mythic Championship VII in Long Beach, CA later that year. She currently plays for OXG Esports (MTG Arena) and is a showrunner for Games Done Quick.

 

Taryn McCarty serves on the Business Development team at Nerd Street Gamers (NSG). Focused on customizing esports to the collegiate space, Taryn also identifies opportunities for growth—from strategic engagements and product improvements to ways to further disrupt the industry.

Before joining NSG, Taryn was director of partnerships at Amino Payments, where she led the development of strategic data products and solutions designed to transform the digital advertising industry. Prior to that, she was director of product at Throtle, director of digital product at V12 Group (acquired by DataMentors in 2016), and one of the first account managers at Groupon.