Pokimane donates $50,000 for UCI Esports scholarships

Irvine, CA, February 13, 2020 – Esports star Imane “Pokimane” Anys worked with the University of California, Irvine to create the Pokimane Scholarship. UCI Esports will receive $50 thousand in funding to assist students with tuition and fees. After an initial donation of $25 thousand, Pokimane will contribute the other half in 2021.

Pokimane Scholarship

Pokimane, an esports personality and content creator on Twitch and YouTube carries 17 million followers across her platforms, making sure her fans get a positive experience from her streams. Her successful streaming career with League of Legends and Fortnite started her to becoming a leading figure in the esports industry.

Today, she made the big reveal on her stream and mentioned on Twitter how she’s been working on these milestones for months. Alongside this announcement with UCI Esports, she also revealed plans for four sponsorships to STEM Advantage scholars. Through experiencing her own financial situations while developing her career, she understands the struggles of college students and hopes to make a difference.

“I remember being 20k+ in debt while juggling streaming & university, and am so lucky to be where I am today,” said Pokimane. “I want to continue to give back to the incredible community that has given me so much, so stay tuned for more.”

One deserving undergraduate student will receive the Pokimane Scholarship in 2022. Starting that year, $2.5 thousand will be provided annually to one undergraduate student per year. Awarded students can also potentially earn the scholarship multiple times while they’re at UCI. Imane’s gift to the school provides an annual scholarship to undergraduate students for up to 20 years. Starting in 2022, UCI Esports now can help up to 20 students all the way through 2042 from this endowment.

Collegiate Esports

finally announcing something i’ve been working on for months ^_^
i’m sponsoring four @StemAdvantage scholars & I’ve created the “Pokimane Scholarship” with @UCIEsports, which will be continuously awarded every year! ?‍??‍?

details @ https://t.co/j68A0Rnvb5 pic.twitter.com/kTGiEZcmtm

— pokimane (@pokimanelol) February 13, 2020

Communities everywhere express joy at this development. The esports industry continues to grow and developing collegiate and highschool scenes is one of the industry’s priorities. Esports saw tremendous growth in 2019 and this year expects even more. It’s thanks to individuals like Pokimane that the industry remains positive while pushing forward. “The gaming community contributes so much passion and energy to the world of esports, and we are thrilled to recognize and reward some of the outstanding leaders,” said Mark Deppe, director of UCI Esports.

UC Irvine took the achievement of being the first public university to fund an esports program. The program then publicly opened state-of-the-art UCI Esports Arena on September 23, 2016. This is UCI Esports’ first endowment in their four-year history. And receiving their first from an established esports community figure like Pokimane definitely marks a good future.

Written by Justin Amin