Commencement 2026

The 166th Commencement of The Cooper Union was held on Thursday, May 28, 2026, in the Great Hall. President Steve Mclaughlin and Jamie Levitt, chair of the Board of Trustees, welcomed attendees and congratulated the Class of 2026 on their achievements. The National Anthem was performed by Casey Chung A’29, a rising second-year student in the School of Art. Skye Jones, a graduating senior in the School of Art with a double minor in the Humanities and Social Sciences, was selected to deliver the class’s student address. 

Judy Woodruff, an award-winning broadcast journalist senior correspond for the PBS NewsHour, received an honorary degree and delivered the 2026 commencement address. Woodruff shared insights from conversations she had with Cooper students and reflected on the political state of the world they will enter after graduation. “Our democracy works when the people are engaged,” she told the class. “And this year, the year we celebrate our nation’s 250th, the year when you’ve earned your degree from this storied institution, The Cooper Union, is a good time to commit to that.”

Presidential Citations were awarded this year to Michael Samuelian AR’95, Isabella A’54 and Arthur H. Corwin A’54, and Janet Neschis on behalf of the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Foundation. Douglas Sharrott EE’83, member of the Board of Trustees and president of the Cooper Union Alumni Association, welcomed the graduates as Cooper’s newest alumni and brought the ceremony to a close. 

Watch the full ceremony here.

Photos by Argenis Apolinario A'03  
 

  • 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.