Recreation On: Virtual Collaboration Center expands gaming alternatives for Statesboro households

The Virtual Collaboration Center at Georgia Southern University is busy this summer season with programming for all ages and pursuits. Under Andrew Mosley’s management, the VCC has change into one in every of Statesboro’s most dynamic hubs for creativity, know-how, and group connection. This 12 months, the middle is providing almost a camp each week, opening its doorways wider than ever to native households.

The VCC kicked off their lineup with Minecraft Camp, a favourite amongst new and veteran contributors. Next was STEM Camp, which ran from June 8-12, adopted by a brief break earlier than the Esports Camp ran from June 22–26.

After one other pause for the Fourth of July, the VCC is about to launch one in every of its most imaginative choices: Arcs and Avatars, a comic book‑e-book creation camp the place children design, write, and assemble their very own bodily comedian books.

“They’ll get blank comic books with just the paper,” Mosley says. “We’ll teach them paneling, storytelling, a little bit of drawing… and by the end of the week, they’ll take home a full comic they made themselves.”

The remaining camp of the season, Summer XP (July 13–17), is a celebration of all issues gaming. Kids rotate by means of full days devoted to card video games, board video games, console video games, tabletop adventures, and PC play. It’s a joyful, display screen‑and‑tabletop mashup that displays the VCC’s perception that gaming is a strong connector.

“Gaming and esports level the playing field for everybody,” Mosley notes.

That philosophy was the impetus for the VCC’s new weekend workshops. On June 13, the middle hosted its first Fortnite session. For simply $10, children—and oldsters—realized the fundamentals, created accounts, and had the chance to play collectively. The thought got here from an area guardian who wished for an area the place households may workforce up. Mosley’s response was speedy:

“We can make that happen.”

And they’re. The VCC can be getting ready to launch Dungeons & Dragons workshops, with plans to broaden into Magic: The Gathering based mostly on group curiosity.

“The more input we get from the community, the more we’re able to do,” Mosley says.

Families will quickly obtain newsletters asking what their kids loved, what they didn’t, and what they’d like to see subsequent.

Beyond camps and workshops, Mosley is working towards a youth esports league, partnering with Bulloch Solutions and exploring methods to contain native colleges. While Statesboro High presently leads the county in esports participation, Mosley hopes to construct a broader community the place children can compete domestically earlier than branching out to groups in neighboring counties.

Mosley’s personal path to the VCC displays his love of individuals, innovation, and group constructing. After years in Georgia Southern’s Eagle Card Center and a protracted stint on the Clubhouse, he joined the VCC throughout its launch in 2023. The middle was created as a “third space,” a welcoming setting the place college students may reconnect after COVID, make new mates, and really feel a way of belonging. Today, that mission extends naturally to the broader Statesboro group.

“We work with everyone,” Mosley says. “Jocks, gamers, engineers—the whole spectrum. Everyone has a place here.”