Grace Kendall Becomes VP of Student Affairs, Dean of Students

Dear Cooper Union, 

I am pleased to share the good news that, as of July 1, Grace Kendall officially assumed the position of Vice President of Student Affairs and Dean of Students. As you know, Grace has been serving as the Acting Dean of Students since last summer, following nearly eight years with the Office of Student Affairs, most recently as Cooper’s Assistant Dean of Students and also Title IX Coordinator. 

In just my short time with Cooper Union, I already know that Grace has a deep passion for ensuring students have the support and services they need to be successful. I have also learned that she is a great strategic partner for our deans, faculty, and staff and a compassionate resource for our students. Her role is essential for Cooper and incredibly important to me as we work to center our students in everything we do. 

In this role, Grace will continue to direct the full Office of Student Affairs, which includes the following: 

•    Alex Fischer, Assistant Dean of Students 
•    Eric Conley, Administrative Manager 
•    Hala Alkasm, Director of International Students & Scholars Office (and newly situated within the Office of Student Affairs) 
•    Victoria Alonso, Director of Residential Life and Community Development 
•    Cassandra Jolicoeur, Student Care Coordinator 
•    Josue Michel, Director of Student Activities, Leadership, and Community Development 
•    Whitney Oldenburg, Director of Center for Career Development 
•    Dannery Minaya, Assistant Director of Center for Career Development 

Please join me in congratulating Grace on her promotion! 

I’m looking forward to working together with Grace, her team, and our entire community to make the coming year a great one for our students. 

Steve McLaughlin

  • 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.