Dialogue with George Campbell Jr., president of Cooper Union for the Advancement of Art and Science

Graphis, Nov/Dec 2001 by Cooper-Bowen, Linda

George Campbell Jr. is the 11 th president of The Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art in New York City. Founded in 1859 by industrialist Peter Cooper it is one of the few private American colleges which offers a tuition-free education. Cooper's first black president, Dr Campbell, is a theoretical physicist and a passionate art collector He is energetic, gracious and clearly pleased with his new post. Cooper Union is one of the most prestigious arts and science institutions in the country with the unique philosophic premise that each art student will have a generalist foundation in all visual arts disciplines while developing a critical understanding of social and historical issues. Located in Manhattan's East Village, Cooper's neighborhood is a vibrant mix of hip and ethnic. The lights in the landmark Foundation Building seem to always be burning.

Graphis: How do you think education, particularly design education, is changing?

Campbell: Our design program is vastly different from 10 years ago. The emphasis used to be on print. Today, although we employ the latest digital technology in interactive and motion graphics, our students are still well grounded in the fundamentals. We believe that content and concept-ideas, are more important than the latest trends. Art has a great influence on science and technology, producing graphic representations of abstract theories. Both art and science have to do with understanding reality.

Graphis: Your career as a painter before becoming a physicist seems like a perfect pair of sensibilities for this institution. How do you see art and science interacting here?

Campbell: At Cooper Union, design is both integral and critical to all disciplines. Within the engineering program, both the technical and design factors are considered part of the cultural aesthetic. Our curriculum overlaps, with students cross-registering in 103 courses. For example, engineers often sign up for architecture, painting or drawing courses, and art students may enroll in classes in physics or engineering. Our future plan is to develop interdisciplinary studies to explore the opportunities for art and science to interface and collaborate on joint projects. Science and technology now have a major impact on design.

Graphis: How does a small, highly selective school compete with other schools offering similar programs? Is the curriculum pragmatic and business-oriented or more exploratory and theoretical?

Campbell: Our curriculum is unique. With the possible exception of Yale, MIT or Carnegie Mellon, no other design schools have a program like ours. Students do not choose specialized disciplines until later. The required introductory Foundation Program forms a basis for the entire visual arts education, and academic studies emphasize the humanities and liberal arts including philosophy, ethics and science. There is an intense academic background here, stressing education rather than a professional preparation. We are not training people for jobs, we are educating individuals. There is plenty of time for them to get more pragmatic kinds of training later. The students we look for must be able to make a major commitment, which is hard for a 17 or 18 year old. The admissions process here is extensive, with an amazing amount of faculty involvement. It includes a preliminary portfolio review followed by a home test before the final selection. At the end of the day we are exhausted, but it is very stimulating. We are responsible for putting together an ensemble, a group who fit together well representing a diversity of perspectives-sometimes conflicting-that produce a creative environment. Cooper can't depend solely on free tuition to attract the best students, although free of market forces. It is realistic to assume that the quality of student that is admitted here, tuition-free, is most likely capable of earning a full scholarship at another school. We must offer cutting edge programs. Cooper Union does not plan to expand in terms of student enrollment. We think that 900-1000 students are an ideal size. Half are in engineering, one third in the Art program and the rest, about 150 students, are in Architecture. Of the 1200 applicants to the Art program, only 60 are accepted. Our goal is to teach people to understand the depth of their discipline with a broad, forward-looking education. This mode of lifelong learning produces individuals who have both creativity and analytical skills which allows them to go on to various professions. Engineers may continue their education in medicine, law, management consulting, investment banking or Wall Street. Our retention rate is 75-80%. I'd like to improve on that. I think that to date, Cooper Union has not been as nurturing a culture as I would like. The traditional view has been to bring exceptional students into this highly competitive environment with a "sink or swim" perspective. We don't do enough to keep them. The school should be asking, "How can we help? Let's find out what the problem is." If a student is failing, some of the responsibility and burden is on us. Many of the elite schools have a more nurturing environment: Swathmore has a 95% retention rate, MIT a 92% rate... we should be up there too. Graphis: What are your plans for Cooper Union?