A Message of Gratitude -- November 25, 2021

Dear Cooper Union, 

On this day of thanks, I want to share my heartfelt gratitude for you — faculty, staff, students, and friends — and for the home we have together here at The Cooper Union. It is because this community is made up of such enthusiastic and compassionate individuals that we are able to move forward, collectively, in our work and our educational mission. I am grateful to each of you for being uniquely creative, passionate people, and for all that you do to make Cooper an inspiring place. 

This break offers us an important opportunity to slow down and take stock of what an extraordinary fall semester this has been. In spite of the challenges around us as we head into this holiday season, we have so much to give thanks for, including a successful, energetic return to campus life over these past few months, made possible by your hard work and care for one another. So, whether you are visiting loved ones for the first time in quite a while, sharing a meal with friends, or marking this day with time of self-reflection or new traditions, I hope you are finding time to rest, care for yourself, and celebrate the good things. 

I wish you a joyful and safe Thanksgiving break. 

With thanks, 

Laura 

  • 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.