The sounds of cheering and clapping fill the Verizon Innovative Learning Lab at Neil A. Armstrong Middle School, home to one of the school’s unique teams: esports. More than a dozen seventh and eighth graders have stayed after class to play video games. The coaches of the school’s esports team know the students are doing more than just gaming. “Kids are going to play video games at home anyway,” says Verizon Innovative Learning Lab Mentor April Fox. “But to get them into school and in an environment where we can really push communication skills, increase their confidence and get them to connect on a one-to-one basis, I think is the best benefit of having an esports program.” The after-school time spent analyzing gameplay and high-level hardware also translates into a greater interest in STEM. A couple of years ago, Fox saw that Verizon Innovative Learning HQ offers resources to organize a league that she figured out a way to make it happen. “Without the Verizon Innovative Learning Esp...