The Center for Cartoon Studies (CCS) is a two-year institution focusing on

sequential art In comics studies, sequential art is a term proposed by comics artist Will EisnerWill Eisner, ''Comics and Sequential Art'', Poorhouse Press, 1990 (1st ed.: 1985), p. 5. to describe art forms that use images deployed in a specific order for the pur ...

, specifically comics and

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

sAbout CCS: FAQ's
The Center for Cartoon Studies. Accessed December 13, 2010. Located in the village of

White River Junction White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2020 census, up from 2,286 in 2010, making it the largest co ...

, in the town of

Hartford Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...

Vermont Vermont () is a state in the northeast New England region of the United States. Vermont is bordered by the states of Massachusetts to the south, New Hampshire to the east, and New York to the west, and the Canadian province of Quebec to ...

, the Center offers a Master of Fine Arts degree, both one and two-year certificate programs, as well as summer programs,Programs
The Center for Cartoon Studies. Accessed December 13, 2010. and is "the only college-level training program of its kind in the United States."Milliken, Joe
Just Like Magic
Vermont Guardian. April 27, 2007. Accessed December 13, 2010

History

The Center for Cartoon Studies was founded by cartoonist

James Sturm James Sturm (born 1965) is an American cartoonist and co-founder of the Center for Cartoon Studies in White River Junction, Vermont. Sturm is also the founder of the National Association of Comics Art Educators (NACAE), an organization committed t ...

and Michelle Ollie in 2004, with its first class of 18 students beginning their schooling in the Fall of 2005. The first class of students were accepted less on the quality of their drawing and more on their critical thinking skills, literary merit, storytelling abilities and curiosity. The Center's first commencement took place on May 19, 2007, with roughly 20 students graduating. In 2007 CCS was approved by the State of Vermont to award Master of Fine Arts degrees and certificates, which have been awarded to students from all subsequent classes. It currently has a student body of 48 students with an average age of 24.CCS Factsheet
The Center for Cartoon Studies. Accessed December 13, 2010. About 20 new students are accepted each year.
. New England Cable News. January 23, 2008. Accessed December 13, 2010. The school educates students to be proficient in all aspects of graphic design and production, including self-publication and promotion. This is a notable step away from the specialized production model of mainstream comics companies such as

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

and

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

, wherein writing, pencilwork, inking, coloring, and lettering are most often handled by separate individuals. This inclination is in part due to many of the faculty's and significant donor

Peter Laird Peter Alan Laird (born January 27, 1954) is an American comic book writer and artist best known for co-creating the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles with writer and artist Kevin Eastman. Early life and career Laird was born on January 27, 1954, in ...

's experience with

alternative comics Alternative comics cover a range of American comics that have appeared since the 1980s, following the underground comix movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Alternative comics present an alternative to mainstream superhero comics which ...

. The State of Vermont Department of Education approved CCS for degree granting authority and the school is also a member of Vermont Higher Education Council.

Campus

The Center for Cartoon Studies currently operates out of two buildings in the historic district of

White River Junction, Vermont White River Junction is an unincorporated village and census-designated place (CDP) in the town of Hartford in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 2,528 at the 2020 census, up from 2,286 in 2010, making it the largest c ...

. The school rents space in the former Colodny’s Surprise Department Store Building, and in December 2011 the school purchased a former Post Office a few buildings down from Department Store Building. The schools Schulz Library used to be housed in a former fire station on Bridge Street, a building also occupied by the

Main Street Museum The Main Street Museum is an eclectic display space for material culture and a civic organization in White River Junction, Vermont. The museum's present form and activities resemble the 18th and 19th century " cabinet of curiosities" and point ...

, but had to be evacuated in August 2011 due to flood waters from

Hurricane Irene Hurricane Irene was a large and destructive tropical cyclone which affected much of the Caribbean and East Coast of the United States during late August 2011. The ninth named storm, first hurricane, and first major hurricane of the 2011 ...

.Polston, Pamela
Vermont's Cartoon School Gets a New Home
Seven Days. December 21, 2011. Accessed January 7, 2012

Colodny’s Surprise Department Store

All the main operational and educational facilities of the Center for Cartoon Studies are located in the former Colodny’s Surprise Department Store Building. Built in 1929, the building is the only

Art Deco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...

building in downtown White River Junction, and is built partially with Antique Verde marble quarried from

Rochester, Vermont Rochester is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,099 at the 2020 census. The central village is delineated as the Rochester census-designated place. Set on the edge of the Green Mountain National Forest, th ...

. CCS inhabits the first floor and basement of the building and includes multiple offices, a classroom, and an "open basement studio."O'neill, Maggie Severns
Meanwhile in White River Junction…Comic Students camp out
.

The Dartmouth ''The Dartmouth'' is the daily student newspaper at Dartmouth College and America's oldest college newspaper. Originally named the ''Dartmouth Gazette'', the first issue was published on August 27, 1799, under the motto "Here range the world— ...

. May 4, 2007. Accessed December 13, 2010.

Post Office

The Former Post office Building in downtown White River Junction was purchased by the school in December 2011. The brick building is constructed in a

colonial revival The Colonial Revival architectural style seeks to revive elements of American colonial architecture. The beginnings of the Colonial Revival style are often attributed to the Centennial Exhibition of 1876, which reawakened Americans to the archit ...

architectural style and was built in 1934 as a

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

structure. This building will become the main structure for the Center for Cartoon Studies and includes classrooms, faculty offices and lounges, and the Schulz Library. The top floor of the Post Office Building is still rented to the current tenants. It also includes studio space for the Inky Solomon Center, a grant-program geared towards CCS alumni, their comics and community outreach.

Schulz Library

The Schulz Library, named after

Charles M. Schulz Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz (; November 26, 1922 – February 12, 2000) was an American cartoonist and the creator of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', featuring what are probably his two best-known characters, Charlie Brown and Snoopy. He is wi ...

is the official library of the Center for Cartoon Studies and currently houses over 9,000 titles in one room. The Library is currently in storage, but was previously housed in the former Bridge Street firehouse, owned by the

. The material in the library had to be evacuated in August 2011 due to flood waters from

. The Library's collection focuses on

comic book A comic book, also called comicbook, comic magazine or (in the United Kingdom and Ireland) simply comic, is a publication that consists of comics art in the form of sequential juxtaposed panels that represent individual scenes. Panels are of ...

s, as well as "books about cartooning – both academic and instructional." The Schulz's collection has grown largely from donations from collectors and publishers, as well as artists.Schulz Library
The Center for Cartoon Studies. Accessed December 13, 2010. By the fall semester of 2012 the Schulz library will be moved to the Post Office Building the CCS purchased in 2011. Special collections located at the Library include collections of gag cartoons, classic newspaper comic strips, Zines and mini-comics, and a large collection of rare and hard to find Peanuts books, as well as "a near-complete run of ''The Comics Journal''." Many hard-to-find titles and previews of student work are featured on the Schulz Library Blog.

Academics

The Center For Cartoon Studies offers a Master of Fine Arts degree, both one and two-year certificate programs, as well as summer programs. Each term, roughly 14 well known cartoon artists and others in the field come to CCS as visiting faculty and guest lecturers. The visiting faculty lecture, critique, and discuss with students of the school the student work and their own. Past visiting faculty have included Alison Bechdel, Ed Brubaker, Ivan Brunetti, James Kochalka, Jason Lutes, Scott McCloud, Seth (cartoonist), Seth, Art Spiegelman, Craig Thompson, and Chris Ware. A senior Thesis is required at the Center, which usually involves the creation of a full scale

or a full year's worth of work.

Notable persons

In addition to Sturm, Stephen R. Bissette, Jason Lutes and Alec Longstreth are permanent faculty. For the 2011–2012 school year, cartoonist and animator Robert Sikoryak joined the faculty. Students and alumni from the Center for Cartoon Studies have received Ignatz Awards, Eisner Award nominations and Xeric Foundation grants for their work. One alumni, who launched their drag career while attending the school, has won ''RuPaul's Drag Race''. * Robyn Chapman - CCS Fellowship, Xeric Foundation grant, ''Theater of the Meek'' * Charles Forsman - 2013 Ignatz Award for Outstanding Minicomic ''The End of the F***ing World, The End of the Fucking World,'' 2008 Ignatz Awards for Outstanding Comic and Outstanding Series ''Snake Oil'' *Colleen Frakes - Xeric Foundation grant, ''Tragic Relief'', 2009 Ignatz Award, Promising New Talent, ''Woman King'' * Alexis Frederick Frost - Xeric Foundation grant, ''La Primavera'' * Samuel Gaskin - Xeric Foundation grant, ''Pizza Wizard'' * Alex Kim - Xeric Foundation grant, ''Wall City'' * Alec Longstreth- CCS Fellowship, 2005 Ignatz Award for Outstanding Minicomic (''Phase 7''), 2007 Ignatz Award for Outstanding Debut Comic (''Papercutter'' #6) * Annie Murphy - Xeric Foundation grant, ''I Still Live: Biography of a Spiritualist'' * Gabby "Ken Dahl" Schulz - CCS Fellowship, 2007 Ignatz Award Best Mini-Comic, ''Monsters'', 2010 Ignatz Award Best Story, ''Monsters''. 2010 Eisner Award nominee, Best Reality-Based Work for ''Monsters''. *

- 2010 Ignatz Award Outstanding Graphic Novel, ''Market Day'' * Melissa Mendes - Xeric Foundation grant, ''Freddie'' * Laura Terry - Xeric Foundation grant, ''Overboard'' * Tillie Walden - 2016 Eisner Nomination Best Single Issue/One Shot, ''I Love This Part'', 2017 Eisner nomination for Best Digital Comic, ''On a Sunbeam'' * Sasha Velour - Winner of ''RuPaul's Drag Race'' Season 9

Documentary

CCS is the subject of a documentary film, ''Cartoon College,'' by Josh Melrod and Tara Wray. The film follows a group of CCS students from the 2008, 2009, 2010 and 2011 classes and includes interviews with notable faculty and luminaries. It has been screened at film festivals in California, Vancouver (Canada), Washington, Florida, Glasgow, Maryland and of course, White River Junction. Future shows include New York City, Atlanta and New Zealand.

References

External links

official site

Schulz Library Catalog

Schulz Library Blog

journal/essay by Sturm about founding the school

Visiting Faculty Blog

Cartoon College Movie Official Blog
{{Authority control Comics-related organizations Vermont culture Educational institutions established in 2004 White River Junction, Vermont Education in Windsor County, Vermont 2004 establishments in Vermont Private universities and colleges in Vermont Art schools in Vermont