Loss of Beloved Cooper Faculty Member

Dear Cooper Union,

It is with deep sadness that I write you today with the news that Daniel Lepek, Professor of Chemical Engineering and a 2004 Cooper graduate, passed away on May 26 after a yearlong battle with cancer. Professor Lepek was a constant presence for good at Cooper since he joined the School of Engineering in 2009. His spirit and contributions, his warm and creative nature, always seeking to bring out the best in those around him.

Dean Barry Shoop shared the news earlier today with School of Engineering faculty and students. Dean Shoop’s words, below, were a beautiful tribute to Professor Lepek:

Daniel was a kind, gentle, talented, and creative person who made immense contributions to Cooper Union and the profession. One could rightly characterize him as a renaissance man. His research interests included particle technology, fluidization and multiphase flow, pharmaceutical engineering, modeling of transport and biotransport phenomena, and engineering education. He was also a Fulbright Scholar. In addition, Daniel was an accomplished pianist, composer, and musical director. He regularly performed at the Cooper Union Talent Show.

When I first arrived at Cooper Union in the spring semester of 2019, Daniel was the first faculty member to invite me to lunch where he introduced me to Madame Vo’s Vietnamese restaurant. It continues to be one of my favorites in the East Village and it will evoke special memories of Daniel in the future. An example of his creativity was ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE – An Immersive Theatrical Experience on Engineering Ethics that he piloted in ESC000 in AY2022. This was an informal, semi-staged reading of ENEMY OF THE PEOPLE which tells the story of a respected doctor who courageously tells the truth about a health hazard in his small town and is consequentially denounced and ostracized.

Daniel was a favorite of students and was a valued colleague to faculty and staff across The Cooper Union, and he will be deeply missed.

I will always remember Daniel playing the grand piano in the Stuyvesant Fish house. He loved to share his love of music with others, and those of us fortunate to hear him play will be forever graced by his incredible talents.

As always, it is important that we take care of each other, especially at moments like this, and it’s important to access resources that can provide support. For students, please find counseling resources here or reach out to our Student Care team at studentcare@cooper.edu. For faculty and staff, the Employee Assistance Program’s hotline number is 800-252-4555.

As we learn of memorial plans in honor of Professor Lepek, we will be sure to share those as well. 

Sincerely,

Laura

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