Bequests

A bequest is a simple way to make a lasting gift to The Cooper Union.  You can provide now for a future gift to The Cooper Union by including a bequest provision in your will or revocable living trust.

By making a bequest you do not part with anything today—but when your gift is received, it will help ensure that The Cooper Union will be here, pursuing its rich traditions of academic excellence for generations to come.

Your Benefits

  • Your assets remain in your control during your lifetime
  • You can modify your bequest if your circumstances change
  • You can direct your bequest to a particular purpose.  Please be sure to check with our staff in the Development Office to make sure your gift can be used as intended.
  • You may potentially realize significant estate tax savings
  • You know that your gift will benefit the future of The Cooper Union
  • You will be invited to join The Society of 1859


If you are considering including The Cooper Union in your will, we recommend you discuss your options with your advisors.

For more information about bequests and other gifts that become effective after your lifetime, or for gift planning ideas tailored to your personal situation, please contact Donna Lippman, Director of Planned Giving, at (212) 353-4172 or dlippman@cooper.edu.  There is no fee or obligation for this service.

  • 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.