Each year Dark Horse awards $2500 to the school. The money is broken down into one $1000 Jack Kirby award, one $500 award for a first-year student entering second year, and two $500 awards for second-year students entering third year.
The selection of the $500 winners is based upon 6 to 10 pieces of artwork that a student submits in the April of each year. These pieces are then judged by the school, with Joe Kubert himself making the final decision on the winners. The Jack Kirby award winner is decided upon prior to the new school year, based on artwork submitted by enrollees for the fall term.
"I started this school twenty-one years ago because I realized that it is virtually impossible to get an extensive education to be prepared to enter this field," said founder Joe Kubert, a highly respected comic-book artist and writer himself. The school receives around 600 applicants a year, of which about 110 are accepted. As estimated by Kubert, his students spend 8-10 hours a day, 6-7 days a week honing their craft.