Imane “Pokimane” Anys, 23, is a Moroccan-Canadian streamer with more than 8.5 million followers across her Twitch and YouTube channels.
UCI Esports has received a $50,000 endowment from Twitch streamer Imane Anys, known as Pokimane online, to fund an annual scholarship for students involved in gaming and esports.
The endowment, which will sit for perpetuity in an investment account accruing 4-5% annually, ensures one qualified student per year an award—the Pokimane Scholarship—between $2,000 and $2,500. The scholarship is the first of its kind in our program’s history.
Anys rose to fame as a content creator on Twitch, where she livestreams her gameplay of popular titles, such as League of Legends and Fortnite, under the pseudonym Pokimane. Since starting her channel, Anys has amassed more than 3,800,000 followers on the platform, with more than 9,000 premium subscribers in January. Her YouTube channel, where she posts vlogs and assorted gaming content, is equally popular.
Despite the success Anys has found in the online community, she remains grounded by the memory of her hard-won climb to industry prominence.
“I love being able to share my experience of how I got to where I am today in hopes that it will help others who are on their way,” she announced in a press release regarding her donation, which may entail future involvement in a mentorship role with scholarship winners. “I’m also especially happy to be supporting UCI’s esports program because their students are focusing on gaming in addition to pursuing their college degree–which, I can say from experience, isn’t easy!”
In donating such a significant amount to our program, Anys wishes to institute a merit-based scholarship that will last for many generations to come.
It is our hope that the Pokimane Scholarship will encourage others to give back to the community. We are inspired by Pokimane’s generous commitment to furthering excellence in collegiate esports.
