The Commencement Advisory Group and the Senior Council have met and agreed on the following recommendations.
This year everyone at the Cooper Union will see much greater presence for the resident chemical engineering community. For the past few years, The American Institute of Chemical Engineering and American Chemical Society have been less than active. However, they are back and ready for an exciting year. This year, Brian Deutsch is president of the AICHE and Loni Rodriguez is president of ACS.
Many exciting annual events are on the horizon, including National Engineering Week. Also, AICHE/ACS will be the emcees of numerous upcoming activities. If you are not a member, join! Become a national member. Rewarding benefits and opportunities are synonymous with national membership. Additionally, get involved with the Cooper chemi-community as a "Big Sibling" or "Little Sibling" Chemical engineering students need to know one another better. Help your fellow schoolmates.
Informative and exciting conferences abound. Also, there are opportunities to attend other nearby meetings and really connect with other chapters in the surrounding area. AICHE/ACS will take a role in Kids in Engineering Day and the Networking Dinners hosted at the Cooper Union.
All feedback is more than welcome. The officers this year are devoted. Revival of the Cooper AICHE/ACS chapter is vital. We want to improve the organization from the inside out. Be an active part and allow your voice to be heard. »
Art Student Council has met twice this year so far, in room 604F. Meetings are held every Tuesday night at 10 o'clock; everyone is welcome.
The topic of conversation in the last two meetings centered around planning events for the comming year and applying for funds for those events. We are looking forward to hosting the Annual Film Festival sometime in February. Also in the works are plans for an Inter-school Art Show and the battle of the Bands, both to be held in the second semester.
Other concerns at this year's council are the effects of demolishing the Hewitt Building on current Studio Space. Anyone with suggestions or issues they feel need to be addressed should bring them to the Tuesday evening meetings (and grab a late dinner at the same time). »
The 10th Annual Cooper Union Engineering Career Fair, held on Tuesday, October 8, 2002 was a success due to the high volume of student involvement and the dedication of our recruiting companies. Many of the tables were staffed by recent Cooper alums. Thanks to all the students who turned out to support the Career Fair. Also attached is a list of companies attending the Fair.
The Engineering on-campus recruiting schedule is set to begin on Tuesday, October 15th with The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. This year, company on-campus presence is down, a reflection of the general state of the regional and U.S. economy. While certain sectors (investment banking, management consulting) may not be as visible as in past years, most of our recruiting companies are asking for resumes and maintaining ties with Cooper. We are asking all senior engineers interested in interviews to contact the Career Services Office (email sears@cooper.edu or benca@cooper.edu) and take advantage of all options available in recruiting.
Cooper artists should know that the Professional Internship Program is going strong with sixteen new participants interning in artist studios, museums, video post- production facilities and many other venues.
Remember that the popular CU@Lunch programs continue throughout the fall and spring semesters, offering alumni speakers on topics in art and architecture.
The Career Services Office is offering a design portfolio review for senior designers with a professional recruiter in mid-November. Watch for location and time.
Art and Architecture students are invited to participate in Parsons' Graduate School Fair on October 24. Schools represented include Yale, SVA, Pratt, Bank Street College and the Cooper-Hewitt design program.
Early summer job listings are appearing in the Summer 2003 binder in the Career Services Office. All jobs appear on the Career Services website, accessible through the Student Service site. Contact Career Services for passwords. »
Looking back over the years since their own graduation day, Cooper alumni are eager to learn about what school is like now. A year ago, Assistant Director of Alumni Relations at The Cooper Union, David Dapko attended a Joint Student Council meeting in search of eight volunteers who would be willing to launch a new student alumni organization. A Steering Committee was formed to develop what is now known as the CU Ambassadors.
The Mission Statement of the Cooper Union Ambassadors is to provide a link between The Cooper Union Alumni Association and current and future students, alumni, and friends while promoting a lifelong commitment to Peter Cooper's vision and the ideals of the school. In each edition of The Pioneer, the CU Ambassadors will provide updates on progress and upcoming activities. Be sure to complete an application if you want to be a part from the start! »
On Sunday, October 20, 2002, the American Cancer Society will be holding its annual Breast Cancer Walk in Central Park. Millions of dollars are raised each year in attempt to find a cure for the thousands of women and men who suffer from this disease.
This year, 43,000 women will die from breast cancer. It could be you or someone you know. The disease will strike nearly 200,000 times this year and claim more 3,000 in New York and 1,400 in New Jersey alone.
So please help us this year as Cooper students will contribute to and help Making Strides against Breast Cancer. Last year almost 20 students from Cooper walked together and helped raise money for a cure. Students can support Making Strides by walking, volunteering, or simply by sending in his or her donations.
For more information, visit http://nynjstrides.acsevents.org/making_strides.htm and/or email yosef@cooper.edu if you are interested in joining the Cooper group. »
A very special thanks to Marty Zubatkin for his generous donation of $10,000 to the Cooper Union Gym Club. His support along with the support of the student body will help us reach all of our goals for this semester. If you would like to be apart of the Renovation Team please contact coopergym@hotmail.com. »
The Residence Hall Association will host Olympics in the Fall and Spring. Each Olympics is a 2-week series of exciting events and competitions aimed at teambuilding, improving leadership and interpersonal skills, icebreakers and essentially fun, social activities for residents. This year a number of the events that will be hosted for the Olympics will be open to non-resident students, as well.
This year, Tamsyn is Residence Life Coordinator, she manages every aspect of activity within the dorm. Judy Chung and Loni Rodriguez are CO-Leaders of the Residence Hall Association this year.
The purpose of RHA is to plan programs, acting as a liaison between the administration and the dorm, providing a forum for discussion of the dorm community. Important issues of diversity, vandalism, quiet hours, alcohol and substance abuse, and other topics in student life are within the realm of the RHA. »
Lily Yeh began clearing out an abandoned lot deep in the slums of North Philadelphia. People from the neighborhood scoffed as the "crazy Asian lady" piled up garbage and began clearing space for a park. Children were interested, but she didn't win community support until an old drug dealer called "Big Man" offered to help.
That was 1986. When I visited the park sixteen years later, I found myself in a flurry of activity. Brightly colored streamers and mosaics covered every surface. Prayer flags inscribed with poetry produced by teenagers from the neighborhood hung in the air. There were flowers in planters made from car tires, cement structures of animals, huge murals, and children EVERYWHERE. Many of them were wearing elaborate costumes; racing around with rattles, drums, headbands, and masks. An African dance class was beginning on a nearby stage, and I was quickly put to work.
The Kujenga Pamoja Festival, an annual event, is put on by what is now the Village of Arts and Humanities. The Village is exactly what the name implies: a place where people have created a grassroots, neighborhood-based community designed to promote the well. It has evolved into a sprawling enclave that covers three blocks and filters out into the streets. There is a center with afterschool classes in writing, dance, photography, silk screening, and other visual arts. In the summer, the classes extend into day camps.
The Festival marks the end of summer and the time for Harvest. The Festival's name is Swahili for "Together We Build," indicating a celebration of the village's accomplishments. Family activities are followed by a procession around the neighborhood. A swarming crowd of seventy children or more surround neighboring households with gifts of fruit and vegetables. Later there was a formal ceremony comprising a video projection, dance, drama, and a coming-of-age ceremony for the teens.
To anyone who wished to have a direct effect on our community, urban renewal projects like the Community Gardens in the East Village and the Lower East Side Girls and Boys Clubs offer a way to quickly get involved in a healing community. The Lower East Side Girls Club is looking for female interns to help with afterschool programs. Contact Jenny Dembrow at (212)982-1663 if you are interested. »