However, the Board and Cooper Union
believe that it is in the
college's best interest to approve the consent agreement and direct full and collaborative attention to preserving the
college for future
generations of
students.
That decision sparked an outcry from some
students, professors and alumni who
believed it broke with the vision of Peter Cooper, the industrialist who founded the
college with a mission of free tuition — a mission that for
generations attracted many top engineering, art and architecture
students who were unable to afford traditional
colleges.