About TrueFiktion

The Problem

When students don’t understand the world they live in, they grow into adults without the agency to shape their futures. 

Our Mission

Our goal is to change that by providing an educational tool that equips them with the knowledge and confidence to pursue positive life outcomes. 

Why History Comics

We believe the best place to begin is with the lessons of our shared history, because understanding where we’ve been is the foundation for building where we’re going. Using comics as a storytelling medium enables us to engage students and help them think critically simultaneously.

Our Approach

Design Thinking

Human-centered design is an approach to problem-solving and innovation that empathizes with end users. It involves defining problems, creating solutions, prototyping, and testing designs with the user in mind. Each step of our creation process is informed by the needs of teachers, students, and parents.

Agency Framework

We believe that a student’s true agency blossoms when they see themselves genuinely reflected in their education. Without this connection, engagement wanes, and the potential for agency remains untapped. We use three guiding pillars to build agency into our products.

Gap

We start with gaps in general history knowledge. We pick stories that you likely won’t find in a text­book but are essential to the formation of American society.

Resilience

Every story we tell highlights the resilience of marginalized communities. It is essential to highlight traumatic moments in history, but we must also look past those moments to see how communities have endured. 

Relevance

History education should be relevant. We choose stories that help us know how historical events contribute to current social issues.

Our Team

Stephane Manuel, Founder

“One thing my history education didn't do was help me understand the social issues happening in my community. As a result, I always felt like I didn't have agency in improving my community because I wasn't equipped with the right knowledge or mental models. Had I seen myself meaningfully represented in my history education, I would've been able to use that education to make my community better.

Social studies resources, especially textbooks, aren't designed to help students from historically marginalized groups solve problems in their communities. I decided to create content to help teachers and students - especially those from marginalized communities - learn history in an authentic, engaging way."

– Stephane Manuel, Founder of TrueFiktion

Ava Gyurcsik, Head of Research and Chief of Staff

I am interested in understanding how history shapes our present and can be used to guide the future. History is not just a series of events on a timeline– I believe the power of history lies in its ability to span time and space, uncovering truths that help us better grasp the world around us. After completing a BA in History from the University of Cincinnati, I completed a MA at King’s College London in European and International Politics to further my understanding of how the past shapes our current socio-political orders.

History holds little value if we cannot understand or access it. At TrueFiktion, I’m passionate about bringing untold stories of American history to life in ways that are approachable and engaging, ensuring more people can see themselves reflected in their history education and develop a richer understanding of the past.

Olivia Mitchell, Brand and Marketing

What I enjoy most about being a marketer is helping people find what they need to become better versions of themselves. Not only does TrueFiktion help students think more critically about history, but it also helps social studies educators become more skilled at and comfortable with bringing innovative practices to the classroom. I'm excited to continue connecting the TrueFiktion brand with students and educators who want to enhance their understanding of history, comics, and, most of all, the world around them.