White River Junction
Graduation is set for May 6, at 5 p.m., at Barrette Center for the Arts, 74 Gates St., in White River Junction. Seating is on a first come, first-served basis. The doors will open at 4:30 p.m.
The speaker is New York Times best-selling graphic novelist Nate Powell, whose work includes March, the graphic memoirof congressman and civil rights icon John Lewis, a graphic adaptation of Rick Riordan’s novel The Lost Hero, and several graphic novels.
Powell’s work has received a Robert F. Kennedy Book Award, a Coretta Scott King Author Honor Award, four Young Adult Library Services Association Great Graphic Novels for Teens selections, a Best American Comics selection. His work has been nominated for eight Eisner Awards and a Los Angeles Times book award.
Powell has appeared on MSNBC’s The Rachel Maddow Show, CNN and at the United Nations. His books are on school curricula in more than 40 states.
In addition to his cartooning efforts, from 1999 to 2009 Powell worked full-time providing support for adults with developmental disabilities.
The block party is set for May 7, from 11 a.m.-2 p.m., on Gates Street, adjacent to the old post office, which is part of the Center for Cartoon Studies campus.
The family-friendly event will feature live music, children’s activities and tours of the Schulz Library. Dozens of artists will be doing live cartooning, including Ed Koren, Vermont’s cartoonist laureate; Hilary Price, author of Rhymes with Orange; Swamp Thing artist Stephen Bissette; and Center for Cartoon Studies co-founder James Sturm. Since May 7 is national Free Comic Book Day, free comic books will be available for kids of all ages.
An exhibit of work by the graduating class will be open from 2-4 p.m., following the party. The show will be displayed throughout the month of May in the Center for Cartoon Studies Gallery in the Colodny Building.
Admission is free for both the graduation and block party.
— Staff report