Apply to the School of Engineering

Environment Friendly Plastic Design  

Plastic waste is a massive environmental problem that the world faces today. While recycling plastic waste is critical, researchers and engineers are working hard to prevent overaccumulation of waste through the development of new biodegradable plastics or polymers. Students will learn about new advances in the field of biopolymer design or alternative plastics and synthesize a new polymer of their own. In this class, students will learn lab techniques to synthesize and analyze materials like polymers, explore computational chemistry, and delve into the ethics of engineering. 


Students will learn: 

-Engineering design thinking 

-Science and engineering concepts related to polymer design and synthesis 

-Science research using software and laboratory equipment 

-Engineering ethics 

Instructors: Siddhartha Pinto, STEM Teaching Fellow, and Cooper Union student teaching assistants    

Participants: Students in 9th or 10th grade in the 2022-2023 school year. 

Session information: This Three-week program offers two sessions.  Session 1 starts Monday, July 10, 2023.  Session 2 starts Monday, July 31, 2023. Classes meet Monday - Thursday, 9 am to 3 pm.

Prerequisites: none.  

Teaching method: In person. The instructor and teaching assistants will lead students through daily scheduled lectures, discussions, and practice sessions at 41 Cooper Square. Off campus field trips and site visits will also be scheduled. 

Materials: All materials are included.  Students may opt to bring a personal computer. 

Cost: $1950

Apply now: https://connect.cooper.edu/apply/
Read the Summer STEM FAQs

Course Code: STEM23-10

  • 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.