Francois de Menil (AR’87) Elected Vice Chair of the Board

POSTED ON: November 19, 2011

The Board of Trustees has elected Francois de Menil Vice Chair of the Board.  A 1987 graduate of the Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture, Mr. de Menil has served on the Board twice—from 1993 to 2000 and from 2005 to the present -- and been a member of a number of committees, including the Executive Committee, Finance and Business Affairs and the Strategic Planning Committee among others.  Mr. de Menil, chair of the Board's Academic and Student Affairs Committee since 2009, also chaired the Presidential Search Committee for the institution's 12th President, Jamshed Bharucha.

A New York based architect and principal of Francois de Menil, Architect, PC, Mr. de Menil has won local, state and national recognition from the AIA, as well as the Texas Society of Architects.  Since 1991, his studio has provided architectural and design services for a variety of institutional, commercial, residential and retail clients.  His work has been prominently featured in numerous design magazines, exhibitions and books.

Prior to attending The Cooper Union, Mr. de Menil was a documentary filmmaker, directing the award winning film North Star on the artist Mark de Suvero as well as studies of other artists.

More News from The Cooper Union

  • Founded by inventor, industrialist and philanthropist Peter Cooper in 1859, The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art offers education in art, architecture and engineering, as well as courses in the humanities and social sciences.

  • “My feelings, my desires, my hopes, embrace humanity throughout the world,” Peter Cooper proclaimed in a speech in 1853. He looked forward to a time when, “knowledge shall cover the earth as waters cover the great deep.”

  • From its beginnings, Cooper Union was a unique institution, dedicated to founder Peter Cooper's proposition that education is the key not only to personal prosperity but to civic virtue and harmony.

  • Peter Cooper wanted his graduates to acquire the technical mastery and entrepreneurial skills, enrich their intellects and spark their creativity, and develop a sense of social justice that would translate into action.