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Unlike a lot of college students who spend spring break on sunny beaches distracted from  thinking about their studies, a small group of animation and game design students from the Tuscarawas Campus spent their break fully immersed in activities that kept their attention focused on their degree and potential career options.

Spring Break With a Purpose

They, along with Associate Professor Chris Totten, traveled to the Game Developers Conference (GDC) at the Moscone Center in San Francisco over spring break. The contingent included current students Mario Peterson and Jai Amos, along with Grace McCormack (a Fall 2025 graduate) and alums Max Kunze and Joey Gage, both working in the industry.

Totten, who also serves as the program coordinator, explained that the students truly understand the value of attending the conference and appreciate meeting 51�Թ��� graduates who are putting their degrees to work.

“Even in the best of times, the games industry is notoriously competitive and difficult to break into, so networking and meeting contacts from around the industry is vital for success,” he said. “Even if students do not get jobs at a big company, there are other opportunities working with smaller studios or creating new independent games projects. Going to an event like GDC helps students make contacts with other developers outside of their immediate circles and even connect with developers that they can follow up with back at home.

“A lot of folks from Ohio also go to GDC and then do meet-ups locally,” Totten continued. “A lot of getting into the industry is being lucky, but you can increase your luck by being in the right places.”

Students not only attended meetings and conference talks by industry professionals but also tried out the latest upcoming commercial games as well as experimental games developed as art projects.

Students Gain Hands-On Experience as Conference Associates

While at the conference, Totten and two students (one current and one alum) were accepted to the GDC Conference Associate program. “(Conference associates) work during the conference preparing speakers for their talks, helping attendees find their way around and otherwise helping things go smoothly,” he noted. “CAs come from all parts of the industry, from entry level folks and students to director-level industry veterans. It’s literally the networking opportunity of a lifetime. This is an integral part of the conference every year and I always encourage students to apply.”

The CAs each earned a complementary badge to the conference and access to the GDC Vault, an online repository of every recorded talk from more than 35 years of conferences. Included in those recordings are talks by Totten, who has attended the conference each year since 2012 and spoken seven times. He was named a top-rated speaker in 2022.

Totten noted that while animation and gaming students are encouraged to attend the GDC event in San Francisco, there are other – more local – events that also provide meaningful opportunities for his students. These events include the GDEX in Columbus, a regional professional games conference, as well as the Cleveland Gaming Classic which is a fan convention that attracts a large network of indie developers and is a site for the yearly Global Game Jam, where developers from around the world make games based on a shared theme.

He further noted that 51�Թ��� Tuscarawas students have won awards at the Columbus and Cleveland events. At the 2024 international Conference of Meaningful Play at Carnegie Mellon University, however, his students won the Best Student Digital Game award.

It’s these types of opportunities that enhance the experiences for students majoring in animation and game design at 51�Թ��� Tuscarawas and helps rank us among the top programs in the country. In March, I received news that the 2026 animation school rankings from the Animation Career Review placed the 51�Թ��� program in the top 25 in the Midwest (21st) and nationally among schools offering a bachelor’s degree in animation (18th). The organization considered nearly 200 schools with animation programs from across the U.S. while preparing this year’s rankings. - Associate Professor Chris Totten

“Connecting students to the game development community is an important part of helping them build those networks and find the opportunities that are right for them,” Totten said. “One of the most important things students interested in game design can learn is that they are part of the industry community. It can be difficult when you don’t go to a school in a ‘hub,’ but there are lots of opportunities locally and at places like GDC to find your people.

“Building a community like the one I’ve experienced at GDC and, specifically within the CA program, is a goal of mine with the animation and gaming design program at 51�Թ���. Helping students also see that this community extends all the way to the highest levels of the industry makes everything worth it,” he said.

Students Reflect on the Experience

Totten's students echo his thoughts:

“GDC has been one of the most important and thrilling opportunities I’ve had, and I’ve had the joy and honor of attending and working as a CA festival crew. The friendships and networking I’ve done not only have resulted in what I believe to be life-long friends in the same industry as me, but connections that I would not have if it weren’t for GDC.” – Jai Amos

“GDC is a very wonderful opportunity that allows you to not only learn the insides of several game companies and how they run games, but it’s an amazing way to make contacts and network with other people within your field of work. It was a very pleasant time meeting and greeting people within the industry.” – Mario Peterson  

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