Officers

Laura Sparks
President

William Mea
Vice President - Finance and Administration

Christopher Chamberlin
Dean of Students

Mike Essl
Acting Dean, School of Art

William Germano
Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences

Mitchell Lipton
Vice President of Enrollment Services and Dean of Admissions

Richard Stock
Acting Dean, Albert Nerken School of Engineering

Nader Tehrani
Dean, The Irwin S. Chanin School of Architecture

  • 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.