New York, NY
(February 07, 2011) - The Board of Trustees of The Cooper
Union for the Advancement of Science and Art has elected Dr.
Jamshed Bharucha,
Provost and Senior Vice President of
Tufts
University, to serve as its
twelfth President, effective July 1, 2011.
Dr. Bharucha exemplifies Peter Cooper's mandate that the
object of life is to do good. A truly innovative educator,
Dr. Bharucha's interdisciplinary work combines the science
of learning with a profound commitment to the advancement of
the critical and creative thinking skills necessary to solve
our world's problems with dedication, ingenuity, and
cultural awareness. Dr. Bharucha is the ideal person to lead
The Cooper Union to new heights, states Mark L. Epstein,
Chairman of the Board of Trustees of The Cooper Union.
Dr. Bharucha has been a pioneer in studying how the brain
responds to music. He is also an accomplished violinist. As
an academic leader, he has been an advocate for educational
innovation, including active forms of learning. At Tufts,
he elevated the university's academic stature, sparked
multi-disciplinary collaboration, strengthened diversity,
and led the institution's international engagement.
Dr. Bharucha, 54, will succeed the highly successful 11-year
tenure of
Dr. George Campbell Jr., whose leadership guided the college
toward greater fiscal stability, increased selectivity, and
dramatically improved academic facilities through the
award-winning development of the college's iconic new
academic building at
41 Cooper Square.
Founded by Peter Cooper, a self-taught engineer, inventor,
industrialist, and philanthropist, who believed that
education should be as 'free as air and water,' The Cooper
Union has provided full-tuition scholarships to every
accepted student throughout its 151 years. Offering rigorous
degree programs in engineering, architecture, and the fine
arts, The Cooper Union is perennially ranked among the top
three engineering schools by
U.S. News and World Report.
Ranked first among
Newsweek/Kaplan's rankings of the nation's most
desirable small colleges, The Cooper Union is one of the
most selective institutions of higher education in the
world.
"In a city that is a global epicenter for arts, culture,
academia and innovation, The Cooper Union for the
Advancement of Science and Art stands out as a jewel rare,
brilliant and multifaceted. Not only has The Cooper Union
produced innovative artists, architects, and engineers, it
continues to function as a catalyst for social change. From
The Cooper Union's Great Hall, voices ranging from Abraham
Lincoln and Frederick Douglass, to Susan B. Anthony and
Elizabeth Cady Stanton, to Susan Sontag and Salman Rushdie,
to Newt Gingrich and Barack Obama, have not only stirred
debate, but launched enduring paradigms in social and
political thought. While steeped in history, the college
continues to grow as a place of discovery, where talents
emerge, intellects expand and characters are formed," said
Dr. Bharucha.
As someone who has made a career of bridging art and science
with community and global engagement, Dr. Bharucha sees this
as a unique opportunity to advance Peter Cooper's vision of
a 'union' between learning and discovery, discourse and
action, and the liberal arts and society. "I am honored to
have been selected and I look forward to joining this
dynamic community founded upon the ideal of providing
exceptional students with unparalleled access to academic
excellence, innovation and social engagement on the basis of
merit alone, regardless of their socioeconomic status,"
stated Dr. Bharucha.
"The Cooper Union has had many distinguished presidents over
the course of its history," said Dr. Vartan Gregorian,
President of the Carnegie Corporation of New
York. "The
choice of Jamshed Bharucha as the twelfth President of this
historic institution is a bold and imaginative move. He is
an inspired educator, exemplary administrator, and dedicated
scholar as well as a great humanist. At a time when our
nation needs more interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary
research and teaching, The Cooper Union has reached out to a
pioneer in bridging fields of study and engaging
international communities. I congratulate Dr. Bharucha and
The Cooper Union on moving forward into a bright future
together."
Before joining Tufts, Dr. Bharucha spent his academic career
at Dartmouth College, where
he was the John Wentworth Professor of Psychological and
Brain Sciences and Dean of Faculty among other leadership
positions. At Dartmouth, Dr. Bharucha
was instrumental in launching the first MRI-based program in
cognitive neuroscience. As an outstanding teacher he
received the Huntington Teaching Award in 1989 and the
Undergraduate Teaching Initiative Special Award in 1992. He
served as editor of the interdisciplinary journal,
Music Perception,
was a Fellow at the Center for Advanced Study in the
Behavioral Sciences in 1993-94, and from 1991 to 1999 Dr.
Bharucha served as a Trustee of Vassar College.
Dr. Bharucha graduated Phi Beta Kappa from Vassar College in
1978, majoring in biopsychology. He received an M.A. in
philosophy from Yale
University in 1979 and
received his Ph.D. in cognitive psychology from Harvard University in
1983.
Upon arrival at The Cooper Union in July 2011, he will
reside at the historic Stuyvesant Fish House, built in 1803
by Petrus Stuyvesant, great-grandson of
Peter Stuyvesant, which was gifted to The Cooper Union in
1997,
and serves as the President's Residence.
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The Cooper
Union for the Advancement of Science and Art is a
distinguished private college of architecture, engineering
and art founded in 1859 by Peter Cooper, an inventor,
industrialist and philanthropist. Since its establishment,
all admitted undergraduate students have received
full-tuition scholarships.
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