A man was arrested at Bradley International Airport after Transportation Security Administration found a loaded handgun in his carry-on bag.

42-year-old Stephen Royer of Enfield was carrying a .22 caliber handgun loaded with five bullets, a spokesperson for TSA said.

TSA said the Granby resident claimed he used the same bag he goes camping with and he forgot his loaded gun was in the bag.

TSA officers called Connecticut State Police when they spotted the gun in the x-ray machine. Police then arrested the man and confiscated the gun, the spokesperson said.

This is the second gun caught at the airport's checkpoint so far this year, a spokesperson for TSA said.

TSA allows individuals to carry unloaded handguns in locked cases in their checked baggage.

Royer is scheduled to appear in court on May 6.

The man taken into custody Wednesday night after allegedly trying to walk into St. Patrick's Cathedral, in the heart of New York City, with two gasoline cans and lighter fluid had booked a one-way $2,800 flight to Italy for Thursday, police said. He was also arrested days earlier at a New Jersey church, law enforcement sources familiar with the investigation tell News 4. 

Marc Lamparello, 37, would've been out of the country by Thursday night, NYPD officials said in announcing formal charges against him. Police said he had purchased the ticket to Rome Wednesday morning, hours before they say he was found at St. Patrick's Cathedral with gallons of gas and lighting fluid.

Authorities are still looking into his possible intentions regarding St. Patrick's; he had told police his minivan, parked nearby, was out of gas but that allegedly wasn't the case -- and he was evasive when asked questions by police.

Investigators initially said Lamparello may have been emotionally disturbed. John Miller, the NYPD's deputy commissioner of intelligence and counterterrorism, described him as being "known to police."

Two days before the St. Patrick's incident, sources say Lamparello had a confrontation with police after refusing to leave the Cathedral Basilica of the Sacred Heart in Newark, New Jersey. When an officer told him it was closed, Lamparello said, "If you want me to leave tonight, you're gonna have to handcuff me and arrest me tonight and take me to jail," law enforcement sources tell News 4. He still didn't leave.

Other officers arrived, at which point Lamparello threw himself onto a pew and yelled, "No!" then scuffled with police who tried to apprehend him, sources say. Eventually he was handcuffed and taken to police headquarters to be booked on charges of  defiant trespassing, obstruction and resisting arrest.

Officials say they called in EMS to do an evaluation because Lamparello wasn't exhibiting rational behavior at the time; they found nothing wrong with him. Then the man's mother showed up, said he had an apartment in Manhattan and said she was taking him to her home in Hasbrouck Heights. The van allegedly involved in the St. Patrick's case was parked outside the New Jersey cathedral, but it was never searched because investigators had no reason to do so.

Lamparello now faces charges of attempted arson, reckless endangerment, and trespassing in the St. Patrick's incident in addition to the New Jersey charges. It wasn't clear if he had an attorney. He has no prior criminal history of note.

No one was hurt in either case, but some gasoline did spill on the floor of St. Patrick's as Lamparello was leaving; he had been stopped by a security guard.

Heightened security at St. Patrick's is normal, but the NYPD has ramped up its efforts at the cathedral since the fire that tore through Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris on Monday, Miller noted.

Lamparello, who published a book and teaches at Seton Hall, according to police, is a PhD student at the CUNY Graduate Center in New York. As part of that PhD program, students are required to teach on other CUNY campuses. Lamparello taught one course at Brooklyn College, the school said, but was never employed there. He did, however, work at Lehman College, a spokeswoman said.

In a statement Thursday, Lehman College spokesperson, Sarah Ramsey said the institution was aware of the arrest and taking action to terminate Lamparello.

“We are aware that an individual was arrested last night after an incident at St. Patrick’s Cathedral. The individual was hired at Lehman College during this academic year, and was a part-time, online instructor this semester. We are taking the appropriate steps to terminate the individual’s employment with the college,” she said.

Lamparello had a separate incident in Hasbrouck Heights in December in which he went to police to say he thought he was being stalked by someone while at work and school in New York. He also said he had seen a Hasbrouck Heights police vehicle outside of his New Jersey home in late November and was jarred when it left moments later. Police told him the cruiser had nothing to do with any police business, and he left, apparently comfortable with the explanation, according to the incident report.

A 448-page report by Special Counsel Robert Mueller gives an inside look at Donald Trump's tumultuous campaign and presidency and its possible links to Russians who tried to help win him the presidency. The report says there's not enough evidence to charge Trump with a crime, but it details vague responses to questions and staff members deleting key communications.

Here are some key takeaways from the Mueller report, the conclusion of a 22-month investigation that looked at the question of the Russian interference and whether the president tried to obstruct the probe.

Trump Cursed When Told of Mueller's Appointment
After the special counsel was appointed in May 2017, Trump reacted with anger: “Oh my God. This is terrible. This is the end of my Presidency. I’m F*****,” according to notes from Jody Hunt, the attorney general’s chief of staff. Trump then told Jeff Sessions to resign as attorney general. Sessions submitted a resignation letter the next day, but Trump decided to retain Sessions.

Trump Demanded Mueller’s Removal
Trump directed White House Counsel Don McGahn in May 2017 to call Deputy Attorney General Rod Rosenstein to have Mueller removed as special counsel.

“McGahn's clear recollection was that the President directed him to tell Rosenstein not only that conflicts existed but also that ‘Mueller has to go,’” the report says.

McGahn refused the directive and was prepared to resign over it — he told then White House Chief of Staff Reince Preibus that the President had asked him to “do crazy sh*t,” according to the report.

Mueller was never fired.

Trump was told he was under investigation

In December 2017, the special counsel’s office advised the president’s lawyers that Trump was the subject of an investigation — although Trump has repeatedly said since that he is not the subject of an investigation.

Mueller determined that the Trump campaign had not conspired or coordinated with the Russian government, but the president’s team did think it would benefit from the Russian attempts to publish stolen emails.
The report found that the Russian government interfered in the 2016 presidential campaign in what it called “sweeping and systemic fashion,” and also that the Trump campaign expected to benefit from those efforts.

"The Campaign expected it would benefit electorally from information stolen and released through Russian efforts,” the report said.

Nonetheless “the investigation did not establish that member of the Trump Campaign conspired and coordinated with the Russian government in its election interference activities,” the report said.

Barr in his letter to Congress reported the last sentence but omitted the sentence that the Trump campaign thought it would benefit from the stolen emails released on WikiLeaks.

Barr earlier told Congress that there were two main Russian efforts to influence the presidential election, one involving a Russian organization called the Internet Research Agency, that used social media in the United States to “sow social discord, eventually with the aim of interfering with the election,” and the second involving the Russian government’s efforts to hack into the emails of Hillary Clinton’s campaign and Democratic party organizations and publish them through WikiLeaks and other groups.

According to Rick Gates, a top campaign official, "by the late summer of 2016, the Trump Campaign was planning a press strategy, a communications campaign and messaging based on the possible release of Clinton emails by WikiLeaks."

The Trump campaign did have "numerous" contacts with Russians
The investigation identified two kinds of connections between members of the Trump campaign and the Internet Research Agency — one by linking, retweeting or reposting pro-Trump or anti-Clinton content and two by meeting with agency employees posing as Americans to coordinate political rallies in the United States.

Donald Trump Jr., Eric Trump, Kellyanne Conway, Brad Parscale and Michael Flynn all liked or promoted social posts originally posted by the IRA. 

If Mueller could have exonerated the president, he would have
Mueller wrote that because the members of his team were determined not to make a traditional prosecutorial judgment, they did not draw ultimate conclusions about the president’s actions and his intent. The evidence they obtained would “need to be resolved” if it were to make a traditional prosecutorial judgment, the report said.

“At the same time, if we had confidence after a thorough investigation of the facts that the President clearly did not commit obstruction of justice, we would so state,” the report said. “Based on the facts and the applicable legal standards, we are unable to reach that judgment. Accordingly, while this report does not conclude that the President committed a crime, it also does not exonerate him.”

Trump associates deleted “relevant communications”
The office said that some of those they interviewed or investigated, “including some associated with the Trump campaign,” had “deleted relevant communications” or used encrypted applications that did not provide for long-term retention of data.

In those cases the office could not corroborate witness statements or fully question witnesses about statements that “appeared inconsistent with other known facts.”

Therefore, the special counsel’s office could “not rule out the possibility that the unavailable information would shed additional light on (or cast in a new light) the events described in the report.”

Trump agreed to respond to written responses on Russian-related questions, but not on obstruction
The report notes that Trump “did not similarly agree to provide written answers to question on obstruction topics or question on events during the transition.”

Mueller’s team sought to interview the president for more than a year, and considered issuing a subpoena for Trump but decided against it because of the likelihood of a long legal battle. Prosecutors also said they believed they had enough evidence and information from other sources to draw "relevant factual conclusions on intent and credibility,” the report said.

The written answers that Trump did provide were not sufficient, according to the report. 

“The President stated on more than 30 occasions that he ‘does not 'recall' or ' remember' or have an ' independent recollection’ of information called for by the questions. Other answers were ‘incomplete or imprecise,'" the report said.

12 mystery cases have been referred to other jurisdictions
Two cases that were referred included the case against Trump’s longtime associate, Michael Cohen, to the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York on financial crimes that he pleaded guilty to and another involving lobbyist Gregory Craig, a White House counsel early in President Barack Obama’s administration who has been charged with making false statements about work for the Ukrainian government. But information about 12 other cases were redacted on grounds of “harm to ongoing matter.”

Two additional flu-associated deaths have been reported in Connecticut, according to the state Department of Health.

The flu remained widespread during the 15th week of flu season and 68 flu-associated deaths have been reported in Connecticut since the end of August.

One of the people who died this season was between 5 and 17, four were 25 to -49 years old, 18 were 50 to 64 and 45 were 65 years old or over.

Since Aug. 26, 3,031 people have been hospitalized with influenza.

See the number of lab tests that have been positive for influenza in each Connecticut county:

• New Haven County: 2,787
• Hartford County: 1,965
• Fairfield County: 1,701
• New London County: 735
• Litchfield County: 543
• Middlesex County: 499
• Windham County: 276
• Tolland County: 180
• Unknown County: 243

House Judiciary Committee Chairman Rep. Jerry Nadler, D-NY, said after the release of the redacted Mueller report that Attorney General William Barr has “shown an unsettling willingness to undermine his own department in order to protect President Trump.”

The 448 pages of special counsel Robert Mueller's report released Thursday contain a trove of new details about the Trump campaign's interactions with Russians, Wikileaks, possible obstruction and the emotional highs and lows of now-President Donald Trump as the federal investigation continued behind closed doors.

Notably, as NBC News reported, the report contains revelations about a 2016 meeting where Trump's son-in-law and advisor Jared Kushner and now-former national security advisor Michael Flynn spoke with a Russian envoy.

The report also expands on what the public had already learned about eldest son Donald Trump Jr.'s emails setting up a 2016 Trump Tower meeting with Russians who were promising damaging information on rival Hillary Clinton. It also confirms Trump Jr.'s correspondence with WikiLeaks about hacked Clinton campaign emails.

A Wolcott woman thought she was paying her electric bill on time, right up until the point she received a collection notice in the mail.

Jennifer Bonevento says she thought her monthly payment plan with Eversource was set in stone, until she got that notice in the mail. A company representative said she missed a payment and when she couldn’t rectify it with Eversource, NBC Connecticut Responds stepped in.

If you ask Bonevento about the cost to heat her home, she will tell you it’s pretty steep.

“In the winter, it can be between $400 and $800 a month,” she said.

She relies on electric to warm her 1700-square-foot townhouse.

To ease the financial burden, Bonevento set up a $405 monthly payment plan in January with Eversource.

“I mean the rates kept rising and rising and rising,” said Bonevento.

Bonevento checked her receipt to verify the payment plan. The problem was, the payment plan wasn’t showing up on online and Eversource told her they never received her first payment.

“It was the end of January and we had received the mail and it said that they were going to shut off my electricity,” Bonevento said.

Frantic, Bonevento called Eversource.

“I was like, well, this is crazy. I pay my bill every single month…what is going on?” said Bonevento.

Since Eversource said they hadn’t receive her payment, a representative told Bonevento she had to pay even more money in addition to her current utility bill to keep the power on.

“I was like I have documentation. I have the emails. I have print outs. They still couldn’t find it,” said Bonevento.

After attempting to resolve the issue with Eversource with no luck, she turned to NBC Connecticut Responds for help.

“I was just so frustrated,” said Bonevento.

After we reached out, an Eversource spokesperson told us:

“The issue was immediately addressed with the customer and resolved it to her satisfaction.”

The solution brought Jennifer’s Eversource account to a zero balance on her next bill.

“I was so grateful to you guys that, that you guys helped. I mean that was the greatest,” said Bonevento.

An 18-year-old Hartford man has been charged in a shooting that injured three people on Tuesday night.

Police arrested 18-year-old Mekhi Thompson Thursday. He is accused of shooting three men in the area of Bedford and Brook streets.

The three victims were taken to the hospital for treatment and are expected to recover.

Thompson was charged with conspiracy to commit assault, first-degree assault, and carrying a pistol without a permit. He is being held on a $750,000 bond.

House Intelligence Committee Chairman Rep. Adam Schiff, D-Calif., said Thursday that Attorney General William Barr "did a grave disservice to his own country by misrepresenting several parts of the Mueller report."

The eve of the eight day Passover holiday comes on the eighth day of the Stop & Shop workers’ strike.

Local Jewish families that won’t cross the picket line at open stores are scrambling to find all the special food they need for the holiday.

“We didn’t shop early enough,” Stacey Wyner from Woodbridge said. “We waited not knowing there was going to be a strike.”

Wyner said her family had to go out of town looking for Kosher for Passover food.

“We had to travel a little bit farther this year to get out food, down to Stamford at Fairway,” she said.

She also picked up some last minute items Thursday afternoon at the Westville Kosher Market.

“Yes, it was busier because usually my customers who buy the vegetables and stuff they cannot find here, they go to Stop & Shop,” co-owner Rachel Hamenachem. “They came here and we needed to help them.”

During Passover, observant Jews do not eat bread and there are related dietary restrictions.

“It’s a huge inconvenience for me,” said Chaya Manning from Woodbridge. “But that’s more important and I don’t want to cross there line.”

Manning said she is relying on her mother from New Jersey to help prepare for the holiday.

“And I sent her to the supermarket there and she’s going to bring stuff,” she said, “but she’s 83-years old so she’s got to shlep stuff so I’m trying to make do with less than I normally would.”

Inside the Amity Stop and Shop, which carries one of the largest Passover food selections in Connecticut, the display appeared to be almost fully stocked Thursday afternoon.

“We’re wondering what’s happening with all the food in there and what they’re going to do with it cause once the Passover is over no one wants to eat any of that food,” Wyner said.

In just a matter of days a mysterious Maryland phone number starting with area code 240 has flooded Connecticut cell phones.

“I’ve had at least three or four in the past two or three days,” Paige Berscagt said.

Berscagt knows all about the new nuisance.

“It’s pretty obnoxious honestly, especially when I’m just like doing other things on my phone and then I can’t hang up and sometimes I’ll just answer and hang up,” Berscagt said.

Other people are now sharing their experiences taking to social media and posting screen shots of their Oxon Hill, Maryland robocall log. Some posts getting hundreds of comments about the same pestering problem.

“This time of year is especially ripe for numbers from the DC area,” Lora Rae Anderson, with the Department of Consumer Protection said.

Anderson says robocallers are preying even more on people after filing their taxes and this one appears to involve insurance. A voicemail left after one of the calls said, “Press the number two to be connected to an insurance specialist in your area or press nine to be added to the do not call list.”

Anderson says robocallers don’t have the authority to add numbers to a "do not call" list and interacting with them will only lead to more of their calls.

“One of the pieces of data that people like this can keep on you is how long you stay on the phone and how much you interact and if you’re likely to interact tomorrow you’re more likely to get a call back,” Anderson said.

Anderson says don’t pick up and don’t follow the robocaller’s cues. Instead Anderson says call your phone provider to set up blocking or alerts for the number.

“Hopefully Maryland stops popping up on my random phone calls,” Berscagt said.

Anderson says the calls could eventually stop as soon as they started but be aware they could come in next with a new number.

“Often times it’s very challenging for regulators like us in like the FTC to even find these folks because by the time anyone got their code that’s used to mask their location they would be somewhere else,” Anderson said.

Yale Athletics hosted its 11th annual Mandi Schwartz Bone Marrow Donor Registration Drive Thursday.

Schwartz, a member of the Yale women's ice hockey team, passed away in 2011 after a long battle with cancer. She never found her perfect match but the Yale community is hoping with their help, others can.

Yale football advisor Larry Ciotti said they are on schedule to sign up between 400 and 500 donors this year, which will be the largest drive in the country.

Coupled with the match registry, this drive alone has helped save 58 lives since it started more than a decade ago.

For more information, click here.

Protesters blocked streets in New Haven Thursday, marking the third day of rallies after a police-involved shooting that injured a 22-year-old woman Tuesday.

According to Connecticut State Police, who are running the investigation, police officers from Hamden and Yale opened fire on a man and woman inside of a car Tuesday morning on Argyle Street in New Haven. The woman was hit and taken to the hospital for treatment. The man was not hurt.

Police have identified the officers involved in the shooting as Yale police officer Terrance Pollock, a 16-year veteran of the department, and Hamden police officer Devin Eaton, who has been in law enforcement for more than four years, including nearly three years with Hamden police.

Pollock and Eaton were both been placed on leave from their departments amid an investigation into the shooting. No New Haven police officers were involved in the incident.

According to New Haven police, the shooting happened after Hamden police received a 911 call at 4:19 a.m. Tuesday about the attempted armed robbery of a newspaper delivery person at the Gas and Go gas station at 144 Arch St. in Hamden.

Eaton and Pollock located a vehicle at Dixwell Avenue and Argyle Street. According to state police, "the suspected party exited the vehicle in an abrupt manner and turned toward officers." Both officers opened fire on a man and woman inside the car.

Surveillance video that apparently captured the incident does not show those movements. Witnesses said they saw police ordering both the man and woman to get out after they stopped shooting. State police said no weapon was found in the car.

Since the shooting, protesters have been putting pressure on city leaders to release body camera footage of the shooting.

Leaders from both cities and Yale have promised full cooperation and transparency in the investigation.

State Police are continuing their investigation. Anyone with information is encouraged to contact them.

The Hartford Boys and Girls Club of Hartford held their annual “Great Futures” celebration Thursday.

The Boys and Girls Clubs of America began in Hartford back in 1860. On Thursday they celebrated another year of helping children in the community grow up and do amazing things, and honored one very special Youth of the Year.

The Connecticut Convention Center was filled with people from across the state celebrating 159 years of the boys and Girls Club of Hartford. The event, emceed by NBC Connecticut’s Leslie Mayes, generates money that funds the club’s programs around the Capital City while keeping costs for families as low as possible.

The star of the evening was this year’s Youth of the Year Aracelis Figueroa, a senior at Pathways Academy of Technology. Figueroa has been part of the club for 12 years and says it has been her safe space and a second home over the years.

“I feel like it’s built a sense of community and it brings people in and we have a big teen outreach program. So it brings teens out of the streets and into the club and to do academic work, tutoring work, leadership roles,” she said.

Figueroa is headed to the University of Connecticut this fall, where she plans to study computer science so she can pursue a career in cybersecurity as a member of the Class of 2023.

“Ultimately, we want every kid that goes through the doors of a Boys & Girls Club to have a plan for the future. And Aracelis is a true testimony of the work that we do with thousands of young people here in the greater Hartford Community,” said Boys & Girls Clubs of Hartford President and CEO Sam Gray.

The Boys and Girls Club’s footprint is getting bigger- a new club is coming to the city’s South End, where they hope to help 1,500 more kids each year.

Learn more about the Boys and Girls Clubs of Hartford here.

Flooding from the Connecticut River has forced the temporary closure of two ferries and required some roads to be blocked off.

“I’ve been noticing the water rise up for the last couple of days,” Jon Sansabrino of Rocky Hill, said.

From an apartment by the Connecticut River, Sansabrino watched the water creep closer to homes and a business in Rocky Hill.

“I started wondering is the water going to get into the basement? You know. There’s a restaurant over here,” Sansabrino said.

For now the river’s expansion is more of a photo op than causing any major problems.

“I wanted to see the level of the water. I wanted to see what was going on,” Paul Dattilio of Rocky Hill, said.

The rising level is forcing some changes.

The Connecticut Department of Transportation reports there is a temporary closure of the ferry between Rocky Hill and Glastonbury, as well as the Chester-Hadlyme Ferry, because of high water.

“This is fairly unusual. You don’t see it like this too often,” Joseph Wainwright of Rocky Hill, said.

“This time of the year it’s pretty typical the water is going to come up and we’re going to get this flooding. This is a little more than I’ve seen in quite a few years,” Dattilio said.

In Cromwell, drivers found part of River Road closed, as was a stretch of Route 17A in Portland.

And in Middletown, people discovered a much closer riverfront experience as the river flowed through part of Harbor Park and also impacted the marina.

We’re still below moderate flood levels.

The National Weather Service is predicting the Connecticut River will stay roughly this high at least through the weekend.

It’s not just a welcome, but a welcome back to Connecticut for the University of Hartford Hawks new women's basketball coach.

It's a homecoming for Morgan Valley. Thursday morning, she was introduced as the ninth head women's basketball coach at the University of Hartford, marking an emotional return to Connecticut basketball for the former UConn Husky.

“You know when you're in the zone and feeling good on the court, that's how it’s felt,” Valley said as she was introduced as the program’s new coach on Thursday.

Valley got into coaching right after graduating from UConn in 2004 and after 14 years as an assistant at six different schools, she's ready for this opportunity.

You understand that there's different ways to do things,” Valley said. “Not just your way or the way you envision it and I think it just makes you a better coach.

She's also has a Hall of Famer and Connecticut legend in her corner.

Most head coaches are great teammates,” said UConn Women’s Basketball head coach, Geno Auriemma, who came to her introduction Thursday. “They're able to connect with everybody on the team and they're able to see the big picture more than most people can and she was able to do that.”

Praise from one of the all-time greats, that Valley isn’t taking for granted.

“You're the best there is coach,” Valley said, emotional at the podium. “And if there's one thing you ever taught me, it's that this game of basketball transitions to life.”

A 17-year-old boy was shot early Friday morning while standing outside at a social gathering in New Haven and a 15-year-old girl was also injured, according to police.

Police said the teenage boy, who is from New Haven, was standing outside on Willow Street, between Mitchell Drive and Nash Street, when he was shot in the shoulder around 12:15 a.m. The injury is not believed to be life-threatening.

During the shooting, a 15-year-old New Haven girl was injured by glass fragments, according to police. They said her leg was injured.

An ambulance brought the boy to Yale New Haven Hospital.

Police are asking witnesses to call the New Haven Police Department Detective Bureau at 203-946-6304 and said callers may remain anonymous.

Editor’s note: Police originally said the male victim was 37, then later said he is 17.

Nine people were rescued from the Charles River after two boats capsized during separate incidents on a gusty Friday morning.

The Cambridge Fire Department announced the first rescue effort at 7:17 a.m. Crews responded to aid the passengers, whose boat capsized near the Longfellow Bridge.

All people were rescued from the water and are safe, officials said.

At about 7:50 a.m., Cambridge Fire said eight other people were rescued after their boat capsized in a separate incident near 409 Memorial Drive. Authorities said the people are all safe and were picked up by Marine units.

The people involved in the second incident will be evaluated by emergency personnel at a nearby pier, Cambridge Fire said.

Around 8 a.m., Cambridge Fire said nine people were removed from the water, and that everyone had been accounted for.

No serious injuries were reported in either incident.

It is unclear what caused the boats to capsize, but gusty winds blew through the region Friday morning, blowing up to 40 mph at times. Due to astronomical high tides, minor coastal flooding and coastal erosion were expected.

From dozens of hacked computers, to hundreds of redactions, to thousands of subpoenas, we've laid out the most important numbers to know after Thursday's release of the redacted Mueller report.

When most people think of sports, they don’t think of videogames. However, videogames are now considered a sport in many high schools and colleges and the competition called Esports is all about teamwork. 

For parents, seeing teens focused on the computer and playing video games is a familiar sight. 

“I started playing videogames as a kid, as most people of my generation have,” Daniel Suitum, a junior at Woodstock Academy, said. 

Videogames are a pastime and a passion for many kids and teachers at Woodstock Academy put a team twist on gaming. 

“Esports is a competitive gaming platform. Essentially students are doing what they may do just for fun at home, but coming together in a way which helps them practice leadership, cooperation, strategy,” Wesley Jenkins, the director of residential life and assistant dean of students at Woodstock Academy, said. “Some of the creative problem solving that happens in videogames really helps students figure things out on their feet, use their imagination and also have to work together in difficult situations.” 

The Woodstock Academy team is one of more than a dozen Connecticut schools participating in Esports under the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference (CIAC). 

“It builds community, teamwork, collaboration, all the life skills that they need,” Cherese Miller, the CIAC director of student activities, said. They started overseeing Esports in 2015 and the CIAC held Connecticut’s first state championship this year. 

Along with life skills, having a coach and structure helps keep things safe. 

“If it is too violent, the schools are not going to even allow it,” Miller said. 

Gaming skills can also help teens when they go to college, including at the University of Connecticut. 

“We just play games and have a good time,” Devyn Lowry, a UConn junior and expert gamer, said. 

Lowry is the president of the UConn Gaming Club and brings students together weekly to play video games. 

“Teamwork is very important, having those creative problem-solving skills, extremely important, especially in today's job economy,” Lowry said. 

While no Esports scholarships are currently offered at UConn, different universities across the country have started the practice. 

The annual Husky Games this weekend will bring around 400 college students to the campus to compete. 

The competition will be held in the UConn Student Union ballroom on Saturday April 20, from 10 a.m. to 11 p.m. It is open to the public. 

“All of the experiences have been positive,” Lowry said. “When you are meeting different teams from different schools and hearing their different experiences, the different ways they like to play and stuff like that, you are constantly learning.” 

He said he is confident that gaming and education will lead to career. 

For the high school students at Woodstock Academy, Esports have already led to opportunities with semi-pro teams. However, this team makes these kids the happiest. 

“Probably the biggest part is just like having fun and being able to enjoy the time that you have with your teammates,” Suitum said. 

If your Connecticut school is interested in adding Esports to the athletic department, reach out to the CIAC.