Ohioana Walter Rumsey Marvin Grant: 2009
Valerie Cumming
Resident of Westerville, Ohio
Awarded to encourage writers under thirty who have not yet published a book
Valerie Cumming was born in Dayton, Ohio. She attended the
Dr. John Hole Elementary School, Hadley E. Watts Middle School, and Centerville High School in Montgomery County. Valerie graduated summa cum laude
from The Ohio State University were she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and Women’s Studies in 2000. While at The Ohio State University
she was literature editor for Mosaic, the undergraduate literary magazine at OSU, and a staff reader of fiction manuscripts for The Journal. She also received the
Jacobson Short Story Award for the best short story by an undergraduate and the Gertrude Lucille Robinson Award for the best piece of
creative writing by an undergraduate woman. In 2002, Valerie received a Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from the University of Michigan.
Since moving to the Columbus area, young writers in Columbus have benefited from Valerie’s instruction at Thurber House’s Columbus Writing Academy.
Valerie and her husband Mark Vukovic are the parents of three young children and it was Mark who encouraged Valerie to enter the Walter Rumsey Marvin writing contest.
Read Valerie's winning entry: Drawing for Beginners
