Anti-Bias/Anti-Discrimination Task Force

Dear Cooper Union, 

Welcome back! I hope you all had a nice holiday break. We are excited for the start of the new semester, which promises to be dynamic. 

As Interim President Malcolm King indicated at the end of last semester, we would be sharing the report prepared by the Anti-Bias/Anti-Discrimination Task Force that was convened last spring. The Task Force was formed to identify lectures, seminars, and workshops that would deepen awareness of differing viewpoints and provide a context for building knowledge in the wake of the geopolitical and humanitarian crisis in the Middle East. Please find the Task Force Report here. 

Our thanks to the Task Force members – 12 individuals representing students, faculty, and staff from across our academic programs and administrative departments – for their dedication to this work. The members of the Task Force worked in a diligent manner, deliberating on the events that unfolded over the past year. The report, however, is a starting point with the next stage being community engagement with its findings. What occurs next will depend greatly on the participation of the campus community. 

The report identifies the “what” and “why” of many areas that can benefit from growth and evolution as a community. Continuing to build on that work together, holistically, by now developing the “how” and specific points of action is the opportunity before us. 

We will begin that work by coming together to discuss the Task Force Report in a Community Roundtable on Tuesday, January 28 in the Library during Club Hours from 12 noon – 2 p.m. Please plan to attend. 

I would like to thank the members of the Task Force for their dedication and commitment in undertaking this important work. I hope to see many of you at the Community Roundtable next week. 

Again, welcome back, and wishing you a good start to the new semester. 

Demetrius Eudell 
Vice President, Academic Affairs

  • 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.