Hermona Tamrat is the founding principal of hgt studio, a Brooklyn-based structural engineering practice rooted in supporting the design of public, community-centric architecture, in the responsibility to advance social equity through the built environment. She obtained her Master’s in Structural Engineering from U.C. Berkeley and Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering from Carnegie Mellon University. During her years practicing structural engineering at Silman (previously Robert Silman Associates, now T.Y. Lin), she collaborated with Herzog & de Meuron on the award-winning Powerhouse Arts Workshop. hgt studio has provided structural engineering support to artists Torkwase Dyson for her large scale outdoor sculptures at the Whitney Biennial 2024, and currently to Kenseth Armstead on various works including a forthcoming public sculpture in downtown Brooklyn.

Hermona is also an adjunct professor at Yale School of Architecture and Columbia Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation.

Hermona's CV is available here. 

Sean Cusack graduated from The Cooper Union with a BSE degree in 1998. He has worked on software infrastructure for the past 15 years at Bloomberg LP, Merrill Lynch, and Jefferies & Co. His work has included designing and implementing system-level interfaces, data-mining, and interactive monitoring systems for Bloomberg's Data License product and Merrill Lynch's Quantitative Statistical Arbitrage unit.

In 2011, Sean started working on his venture, Learnosaurus, Inc. As a dedicated instructor and computer programmer, he decided to combine his passions into a service that will convert grade level K-5 homework into educational games. Research and development is currently under way, and now, after having proceeded through a few structural iterations iterations, the company's first round of crowd-funding is expected to start this spring, and the product ready for use in schools by fall 2013.

At Cooper Union, Sean has been teaching CS102, Introduction to Computer Science, in the fall semesters since 2003. In fall 2012, he also ran his first EID364, a cross-school independent study program focusing on Web and App development and project management. And in spring 2013, he will be assisting Professor Eric Lima with his EID103 design course, and teaching classes at the Flatiron School.

Together with a number of students and faculty, Sean helped found the Cooper Union Entrepreneurship Society and continues to be active in the organization, such as helping to organize and livestream their first big event, the Startup Challenge. During the summer of 2012, he ran a student and alumni workshop called Cooper App Camp. Also see the CUES winter 2012 event, Cooper Union I2V.

As an active member of the Cooper Union alumni community, Sean has been involved intensely, especially since 2011. As an elected member of the Alumni Council, he is involved in the Communications and Events committees, and helps administrate social media for the organization. He also is a primary organizer of Friends of Cooper Union, helping to bring the various stakeholder groups of the Cooper Union community together, and currently maintains the community-owned documentation project CooperUnionTaskForce.com.

In his personal time, Sean loves to Scuba Dive. Having explored St Lucia, Guadeloupe, Bahamas, Lake Annecy in France, and the Galapagos, he earned his Rescue Diver certification in Corsica in 2009. He enjoys traveling above water as well, such as to Machu Picchu and Pompeii. On off hours during the week, he co-ran Boy Scout Troop 999 at the Icahn House West homeless shelter. And today he is working to be a budding amateur pianist, performing occasionally at homeless shelters and small private events.

Sheng Shi has more than 15 years of professional experience in the design, engineering and construction of commercial, institutional, K-12, government, historical preservation, and high rise projects from conception through close-out, while coordinating clients, contractors, budgets, schedules, and man-power. He possesses the communication tools, leadership, and unique interpersonal skills to foster teamwork between the design team, contractors, and clients. Some recently completed projects include MET II Complex, a 2.2 million square foot building; SUNY Stony Brook Center of Excellence in Wireless and Information Technology, Buffalo State College Burchfield Penney Art Center, Manhasset Public Library, and Hampton Bay Middle School.

Mr. Shi has developed company wide structural engineering standards for design, specifications, and document presentations. He has also developed quality processes, monitors the execution of various projects and promotes interoffice exchange of information and technology.

Mr. Shi holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Civil Engineering and a Masters of Science degree in Structural Engineering, from Drexel University. He is an active member of numerous professional associations and is licensed in the State of New York, Delaware, Florida, and Washington. He is also an Adjunct Professor at Cooper Union.

Robyn Kanner is a creative director with a passion for telling urgent human stories.

As the creative director for Biden-Harris ’20, she led branding for a handful of verticals, including social, ads, merch, video, planes, trains, buses, and stadiums. After President Biden’s victory, she continued this work for the Inauguration.

Robyn then launched her own studio, collaborating with clients like Spotify, Showtime, and Governor Josh Shapiro. She led the Democratic National Committee’s first major brand refresh since President Obama’s took office. Within 18 months, her studio joined forces with Studio Mosaic, allowing her to continue working with organizations such as the ACLU, RWJF, and Lambda Legal. She is a visiting professor at Cooper Union.

An avid film lover, Robyn contributes to The Verge through conversations with directors about the decisions they make behind the camera.