Cartoons for Educators

Welcome to the Dubuque Community Schools archive of original cartoons on such topics as kids, parenting, education and a host of other funny subjects some involving dogs!

ubuque artist and illustrator, Gary Olsen draws a cartoon or two every week to post on the Dubuque Schools Website. This section is part of a growing catalog of all cartoons that have appeared thus far. The most recent are at the top of the page. Individual cartoons are also linked to larger more printable files. Just click on them and the larger file will appear in your browser.

If you wish to publish a cartoon for any purpose, scroll down to Rights and Permissions. In most educational applications, the cartoons are free to use. However, if you are seeking to sell and profit from whatever you publish, then a modest fee is negotiated. We use the revenue here at the School District for technology purchases that directly benefit our students.

Gary Olsen has been drawing all of his life. His cartoons have won awards and have appeared in books and magazines across the nation and in newspapers such as USA Today. Gary also teaches cartooning as well as photography and design.

Most of Gary's cartoons deal with education and the relationships between children and adults. "Many of my ideas are distilled from personal observations and actual things I've heard people say. Some are inspired by news items. I don't think I will ever run out of material. When I'm out and about, I will frequently pull out my smart phone and jot down an idea or something I heard someone say. The world is a funny place without even trying hard. " "I call this particular cartoon style, 'jittery line,'" explains Gary. "The more coffee I drink, the more jittery the line. I love this style because it adds tension to the characters."

"I usually draw my cartoons just before I go to bed, often around midnight," explains Gary. "I review captions I may have jotted down or voice recorded in my smartphone, and I review any photos I may have snapped of an interesting character I might use for reference." Most single panel cartoons take Gary about 10 to 20 minutes to create. "I'm very fast," explains Gary, "and I use the Wacom Tablet." The Wacom tablet is a pressure senstive tablet that works with Adobe Photoshop. "Instead of a mouse, I have this electronic pen. I draw directly into the computer," Gary explains.

"I first tested the Wacom Tablet for the manufacturer back in 1990. I became so good with it, Wacom had me demonstrate the tablet at trade shows around the country, and they used my drawings in their advertisements. It's like having a paint box with 20 million colors at your fingertips. But the best part is if something isn't going well, I click the 'undo' button, and the possibility of erasing a hole in my paper, along with the mistake, disappear like magic." Email Gary.

Rights and Permissions:

Use of these cartoons on your website:

You may use any cartoon appropriate to your website.  Just make sure you put the following active text link beneath any cartoon you use. The link must be aimed at  http://www.dubuque.k12.ia.us/cartoons/. You can simply name the text  link Gary Olsen, Higher Education if, of course the cartoon is published online. If the cartoon is published in print media, the credit line should read Gary Olsen, Dubuque Schools, www.dubuque.k12.ia.us.

Use of these cartoons in printed materials:

We ask that if you develop media in the form of print, books, periodicals, magazines or journals (for profit), that we negotiate a fee for that. But if you don't intend to print and distribute them for profit you have our permission to use any cartoons you wish.

Use of these cartoons in educational materials and PowerPoint:

You can also use the cartoons free of charge in PowerPoint presentations or presentation materials that are not intended to be replicated or distributed to others for profit.  They can also be used free on limited numbers of handouts not to exceed 1,000 copies.

Translations :

You may change captions to your target audience's language, however, you must endeavor to not change the essential meaning of the caption. You must not exceed the boundaries of good taste or appropriateness. Any changes that seek to offend an individual, group, ethnic group or culture violates the terms of the agreement.

If you are an author, editor or publisher:

If you are an author, editor or publisher and seek to publish a cartoon, please email Gary Olsen for details on fees and permissions. These cartoons are the intellectual property of the Dubuque Community School District, and revenue generated from sales is invested in new technology for education. Click here for more details on permissions.

These cartoons are linked to printable enlargements.
Just click on them and it will automatically trigger the download. If you are an educator and wish to use them in you presentation materials such as a PowerPoint program with no intent to distribute, they are free. If you are an author, editor or publisher and seek to publish a cartoon, please email Gary for details on fees and permissions. These cartoons are the intellectual property of the Dubuque Community School District, and revenue generated from sales is invested in new technology for education.

Click here for more details on rights and permissions.

This cartoon available as a printable PDF file. Click here.

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