Hala Alkasm

Director of International Students & Scholars Office (ISSO)

Hala Alkasm is the Director and Principal Designated School Official (PDSO) of the International Students & Scholars Office (ISSO) at The Cooper Union, within the Division of Student Affairs. She joined Cooper in 2018 and advanced to the role of Director in 2020. With more than 11 years of experience in international education, Hala leads immigration compliance and SEVIS operations and serves as a key institutional resource on immigration matters, advising departments and programs across Cooper, including Exchange and Study Abroad. She oversees federal re-certification, audit preparation, and services, support, and engagement for Cooper’s international student community.

Before joining Cooper, Hala was the Assistant Director of Sacred Heart University’s English Language Institute and an Immigration Specialist at Bridgewater Associates (one of the world’s largest and most prominent hedge fund firms). In 2010, she founded NaiZvision Media, a consulting firm specializing in public relations, fundraising events, and the early use of social media to build community engagement and brand awareness.

Her commitment to this work is deeply personal. Born in Kuwait to a Syrian family, Hala grew up studying at American schools across Kuwait, England, Syria, and Egypt before moving to the U.S. at 17 as an F-1 student. She navigated both the experience of being an international student and the complex immigration process that ultimately led to her becoming a U.S. citizen. Coming from a family with a strong legal background, including a father and sister who are attorneys, she developed an early appreciation for advocacy and helping others navigate complex systems. These experiences continue to shape the empathy and perspective she brings to supporting Cooper’s international students. She is fluent in Arabic, holds a B.A. in Media Studies from Sacred Heart University, and is currently pursuing her Master’s in Social Work.

Outside of Cooper, Hala has a longstanding commitment to education and advocacy, particularly for displaced communities. In 2015, she supported Syrian refugee education and relief efforts and helped establish a K–12 school for refugee children in Turkey—an experience that reinforced her belief in the power of education to create opportunity, inspire hope, and change lives.

 

  • 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.