Check Out Valentino Zullo’s Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Valentino Zullo.

Hi Valentino , please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
The short version of my story is that my parents, both immigrants from other parts of the world instilled in me a belief in the potential of the American dream which I like to believe I have lived out. Both of my parents were not college educated but I went on to become a professor of English at Ursuline College, a historically women’s college that serves primarily first-generation students like myself. I do this because I believe in the need for a liberal arts education as a foundation to civic engagement and democracy in the United States.

The long (maybe?) version is I was trained up by the public institutions of Ohio including its public schools, public libraries, and public universities. I see myself giving back by teaching, running the Get Graphic program at Cleveland Public Library for nearly 15 years, and by helping promote the city of Cleveland, including by honoring two of its greatest sons, Jerry Siegel & Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman.

My work as Co-Director of the Rust Belt Humanities Lab at Ursuline College is focused on working to activate the city through the humanities. I think that one of the core issues for the Rust Belt is that the decline we experienced also has impacted our regional imagination. If we continue to tell the story of the Rust Belt as one in decline, then that is what we are going to continue to see. Rather, my Co-Director, Katie Trostel and I think that the answer is to activate our region through the humanities, including telling its story and imagining its future.

One way we have done this is to partner with the Cleveland Public Library and Literary Cleveland to create a standing book booth at the West Side Market, where those visiting the market can pick up free books and comics. We also frequently take over the space working with comics creators from around the world including Chad Bilyeu, Andrew Aydin, Sequoia Bostick, and Sara Phoebe Miller, to make comics in this public market. The idea for us is that the humanities can help us reimagine how we use space in Cleveland again seeing its potential.

I was part of the team that installed the Siegel & Shuster Superman Plaza in Cleveland Ohio in August 2025 less than a month after the release of James Gunn’s film.

I got into all of this because when I was a sophomore at Kent State University, my Professor, Vera Camden, asked me one of the most important questions in my life, “Why don’t you study comics?” That changed my life. I was taught the power of imagination that I did not have to limit myself to what has come before but I could think about what could be.

Also, to be specific with titles for the article, I am an Assistant Professor of English and Co-Director of The Rust Belt Humanities Lab at Ursuline College. I am founder and co-organizer of the Get Graphic program at Cleveland Public Library. I serve on the board of the Siegel & Shuster Society, which aims to honor the legacy of Jerry Siegel and Joe Shuster, the creators of Superman.

P.S. I am happy to talk on the phone or in email giving more details.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I would say things were not easy because I think being a first generation college student I did not know what I was getting into, but I think the way I have handled everything in my life is I have always tried to use every opportunity as the start of the next one, always looking at the potential of an endeavor. For example, I was training as a social worker in the Domestic Violence Unit of the Cleveland Police Department in 2013 when I found my way over to the Cleveland Public Library. I went to the library in search of a book club which I happily joined. During my time as a participant I asked if the library had a comics and graphic novels book club. At the time they did not, but I volunteered to start one with them. When I began co-organizing the Get Graphic program at Cleveland Public Library with Amy Dawson and Jean Collins, two librarians at the city’s library, I also always asked what more could do we. We began with a book club from which we added a speaker series, comics making workshops and much more. 15 years later I worked with a team at Cleveland Public Library and another partner, Tower City, to create a cross-downtown event celebrating the release of the Superman movie, which was filmed in Cleveland, where the story began. I was part of a team which included Tiffany Graham Charkosky, Don Boozer, Erica Marks at Cleveland Public Library as well as Kathleen Strawder and Cory Enriquez at Tower City.

All that is to say that I have continually looked at things not in terms of what is missing but as what it could be. That is a lesson I teach my students. I thought why not create a book club and comics programing celebrating the medium in the city where Superman was born?

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
This is funny but Sara Phoebe Miller recently called me “The Mayor of Comics in Cleveland” and this is perhaps one of things I am most proud of in my life. Reading comics saved me. They gave me something to be a part of, something to aspire to be, and something to love. I work on comics today. When I say that people think that usually means I make comics. I don’t. For me one that way takes shape i that I like to either help other people make comics, creating opportunities for workshops in Cleveland inviting in some of the greatest creators working comics today, I also just like to promote the medium. One of my favorite comments came from a colleague and friend recently who said “I never really paid attention to comics and graphic novels before you.” That’s what I like to do. Even if someone doesn’t want to make comics, I still want them to read them, know them, and love them.

I think there is so much potential in the medium and living in Cleveland, the birthplace of so many comics creators, I really want our city to embrace that history.

I am also perhaps known for being part of the board of the Siegel & Shuster Society, which recently installed the Superman Plaza in downtown Cleveland honoring Superman and his creators.

How can people work with you, collaborate with you or support you?
I Co-Direct the Rust Belt Humanities Lab at Ursuline College with Katie Trostel. We are always looking for partners in Cleveland and the Rust Belt at large to do work to tell the story of our region. You can learn more about this work at RustBeltStudies.org

Contact Info:

• Website: https://RustBeltStudies.org
• Instagram: RustBeltLab