Dr. Michael Bitz, professor of teacher education, created the Comic Book Project to improve youth literacy and creativity in communities across the globe. 

October 27, 2025

by Elizabeth Mendicino ‘25

Not only do comic books bring legendary superheroes together, they invite a super-powered collaboration between literacy and creativity.

While comics are not a typical method of cultivating writing skills in academics, Dr. Michael Bitz, professor of teacher education at Ramapo College of New Jersey, is proving that the creative medium may just be an unsung hero.

During his time as a graduate student at Teacher’s College at Columbia University, Bitz postulated that arts-based literacy learning could be purposefully incorporated by encouraging students to create their own comic books.

“One of the things that I was doing that was different was having the youths create their own comic books,” said Bitz. “So not just reading comics…but designing and planning and publishing your own comic books, as your own voice, your own creative pursuit and your own demonstration of what you are thinking and what you’re going through. I found that to be a very powerful opportunity for young people to have a voice. That’s really where the project was born from.”

In 2001, Bitz chose to officially create the Comic Book Project to purposefully initiate this platform of education. Since its inception, he has brought the project to cities throughout the country and the world, serving more than 250,000 students globally.

A student in Kazakhstan works on his comic book.

This past spring break, Bitz visited Kenya for his first launch trip of the initiative since 2019, made possible by a grant from the Ramapo College Foundation.

He was able to partner with the passionate comics community in Nairobi and work to integrate the Comic Book Project into the school system’s strict curriculum. The trip enabled 100 young people to create their own comic books.

He and his team also applied for a grant from the U.S. Embassy in Nairobi to further the project there. Bitz is hoping this potential grant will enable them to empower even more young lives.

“I really want to just keep working with educators around the world, keep learning from them in terms of what they’re doing and their needs and then try to bring this project to different communities around the world and through the U.S. as well,” Bitz said. “Just to keep understanding that creativity is so important and that it can play such a role in a young person’s life, to give them the opportunity to create a comic. Most of the kids who are involved in the Comic Book Project never really imagined themselves creating comics, they didn’t even know they could do that. To empower them in that way and to have them publish and share their work, it’s inspirational every time.”

Bitz cannot choose a favorite of the hundreds of thousands of comics created through the project over the years. He recounts Incredible Manga created by New York City teenagers, an Inertia Man comic out of California inspired by the physics class it was created in, and he never fails to be impressed by the level of creativity and artistry that students are able to showcase.

Students design, plan, write and publish their own comic books through the Comic Book Project.

Back home at Ramapo, Bitz, who has been at the college since 2008, continues to be a strong force, empowering students in New Jersey to become the best teachers that they can.

“It’s an incredible community, and a really welcoming community. [Ramapo] has allowed me to continue to pursue my work with youth literacy and creativity, even though the things I do at Ramapo aren’t always directly tied to that. They’ve given me the space as well as funding and travel opportunities to continue the project.”

Much like the heroes Bitz has inspired hundreds of thousands of youth to create, he certainly has used his powers for good.