Comics and the Art of Visual Storytelling | Education Series

With the growing global awareness of visual literacy, there are elements of storytelling that have always been a natural part of our reading and learning experience. These panelists will talk about what these elements are, how they have developed, and why the comics world has always been an important part of our reading and learning.

Moderator: John Shableski
Panelists: Kendall Haven, Dr. Kerry Freedman, Alex Simmons

Kendall Haven is a Story Consultant/Author/Master Storyteller. He is the Lead researcher for the science of story and creator of the emerging field of the neural and cognitive science of story; master performing storyteller with over 30 years of stage experience; author of the award-winning Story Proof: The Science Behind the Startling Power of Story and the just-released (October, 2014) Story Smart: Using the Science of Story to Persuade, Inspire, Influence, and Teach, a book with the most recent EEG lab research on story influence. You can learn more about him here

Dr. Kerry Freedman is Professor of Art + Design Education at Northern
Illinois University. Recently, Professor Freedman’s research has focused
on questions concerning visual culture and learning.
Dr. Freedman is author of the book Teaching Visual Culture. She has
also co-authored, edited, and co-edited several books and written
numerous articles and book chapters. She has been a Fulbright Scholar
and her work has been translated into multiple languages. She recently
co-edited the International Encyclopedia of Art and Design Education
and is currently working on a book about visual research methods for
Wiley Press.

Professor Freedman has won numerous grants and awards. For
example, she has received grants from the National Endowment for the
Arts and the National Art Education Foundation. She is honored to be a
Distinguished Fellow of the National Art Education Association (NAEA),
has received the Edwin Ziegfeld Award, the Manual Barkan Memorial
Award, and is a past national Higher Art Educator of the Year. You can learn more about here

Alex Simmons is an award-winning freelance writer, comic book creator, playwright, teaching artist, international and educational consultant. He’s written for Disney Books, Penguin Press, Simon and Schuster, DC Comics, and Archie Comics. Simmons is the creator of the acclaimed adventure comic book series, Blackjack. He has also helped develop concepts and scripts for an animation studio in England. As a teaching artist Simmons has created and taught creative arts master classes and workshops for students and educators in the US, West Indies, Africa, and Europe. Simmons has served on panels, and delivered lectures on children’s entertainment mediums, as well as empowering young people through the arts. Simmons founded the annual family event, Kids Comic Con, as well as three comic arts exhibits, which have traveled abroad. He is currently leading a comics and creative arts program for children in the U.S., Europe, West Indies, and Africa. www.SimmonsHereAndNow.com

John Shableski is a publishing industry veteran who has worked in library wholesale, book distribution and publishing. He created library grant programs, industry awards, comics conventions, as well as hundreds of hours of professional development programs for national and international trade shows, conferences and conventions. John has served as an advisor for Book Expo America and EveryLibrary.org. He is a founding member and current president of Reading With Pictures. He has been a jury member for the Eisner Awards and has been selected as a juror for the 2020 Lynd Ward Graphic Novel Prize. His ultimate objective is to help struggling students discover their joy of reading.

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