Presidents of Cooper Union

The president of Cooper Union is the chief administrator of Cooper Union.

President of Cooper Union
Incumbent Malcolm King (Interim) since September 3, 2024 (2024-09-03)
Appointer	Cooper Union Board of Trustees
Formation	1859 (1859)
First holder	Peter Cooper
Website	Office of the President

History

The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art was founded in 1859 by industrialist, inventor and philanthropist Peter Cooper. From its inception, the college committed to providing full scholarships, regardless of need, to its students.^[1]

List of presidents of the Cooper Union

• Peter Cooper (1859—1882)^[2]
• Edward Cooper (1882—1904)
• John Edward Parsons (1905—1914)
• Robert Fulton Cutting (1914—1934)^[3]
• Gano Dunn (1935—1951)^[4]
• Edwin S. Burdell (1951—1960)^[5]
• Johnson E. Fairchild (1960—1961) (Acting)^[5]
• Richard Franklin Humphreys (1961—1968)^[6][7][8]
• Henry Heald (1968—1969) (Acting)^[9]
• John F. White (1969—1979)^[9]
• Bill N. Lacy (1980—1987)^[10][11]
• John Jay Iselin (1988—2000)^[12]
• George Campbell Jr. (2000—2011)^[13][14]
• Jamshed Bharucha (2011—2015)^[1][15]
• William Mea (2015—2017) (Acting) ^[16]
• Laura Sparks (2017—2024)^[17][18]
• Malcolm King (2024—2025) (Acting)^[19]
• Steven W. McLaughlin (2025—present) ^[20]