Jerry Craft facts for kids

Jerry Craft, born on January 22, 1963, is a cool American artist. He draws cartoons and illustrates books for kids. You might know him from his comic strip Mama's Boyz. He also wrote popular graphic novels like New Kid, Class Act, and School Trip. Jerry Craft is one of the few African American cartoonists whose work appears in many newspapers.

Growing Up and School

Jerry grew up in Washington Heights, a part of New York City. He went to the Ethical Culture Fieldston School. Later, he studied art at the School of Visual Arts. He earned a degree in Media Arts in 1984.

Jerry's Creative Journey

Jerry Craft worked for twelve years in advertising. During this time, he also started drawing comics. He worked on projects for Marvel Comics and Harvey Comics.

After that, Jerry spent eight years at King Features Syndicate. He wrote sales brochures there. This connection helped his comic strip Mama's Boyz get published in 1995.

Jerry later became the editorial director for the Sports Illustrated for Kids website. He was even nominated for an award for his fun Flash cartoons. In 2006, he decided to become a full-time cartoonist.

Today, Jerry often visits schools, camps, and libraries. He teaches kids how to draw cartoons.

Mama's Boyz Comic Strip

Mama's Boyz is a comic strip about a family. It follows Pauline Porter, a single African American mother. She has two teenage sons, Tyrell and Yusuf. Other characters include Pauline's brother Greg and their parents.

The idea for Mama's Boyz came from an earlier strip. It was called The Outside View. Jerry first started sharing it himself in 1987. In 1990, he used some ideas from it to create Mama's Boyz. He shared this new strip with New York's The City Sun. Soon, it appeared in many weekly papers across the country. In 1995, King Features picked up Mama's Boyz for weekly publication.

The Mama's Boyz characters also help the American Diabetes Association. They are official "spokescharacters" for the African-American Program.

New Kid Graphic Novel

New Kid was published in 2019. It tells the story of Jordan Banks. He is an African-American seventh grader. Jordan starts attending a mostly white, wealthy private school.

This book is partly based on Jerry's own life. It shows what it's like to grow up. Jordan is one of the few African-American students at his new school. He often faces small, everyday challenges because of this.

New Kid won the Newbery Medal on January 27, 2020. This was a huge honor! It was the first graphic novel ever to win this award. New Kid also won the 2020 Coretta Scott King Author Award and the Kirkus Prize.

Jerry's Family Life

Jerry Craft has two sons, Jaylen and Aren. Sadly, Aren passed away on February 8, 2024. He was 24 years old. Before his passing, Aren and Jaylen wrote a book with their father. It was called The Offenders: Saving the World While Serving Detention!. Jerry Craft lives in Norwalk, Connecticut.

Awards and Honors

• 2020 Newbery Medal for New Kid
• 2020 Coretta Scott King Author Award for New Kid
• 2013 Glyph Awards for Mama's Boyz (Best Comic Strip or Webcomic)
• 2009 African American Literary Awards Show Open Book Awards
• 2004 African American Literary Awards Show Open Book Awards
• American Diabetes Association Outstanding Supporter Award (twice!)
• National Cartoonists Society — nominated for an award