New York state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has launched an investigation into the financial decision-making at Cooper Union in New York, where protests and lawsuits erupted following the school’s decision to charge tuition after nearly two hundred years of offering free college education to admitted students.  (more…)

The Cooper Union Board of Trustees has issued a statement that the university will move forward with its plan to begin charging admission, with an attempt to continually provide additional scholarship funds as needed. “The actions taken by the board today and in April are intended to provide The Cooper Union with a financial model that will sustain it into the future, while ensuring both the quality of the academic program and the institution’s ability to enroll students entirely on the basis of their aptitude and achievement and to meet their full financial need,” the school said in a statement. (more…)

In the wake of Cooper Union’s contentious decision to begin charging admission, The New York Times has published an in-depth study of the school’s finances, particularly its ownership of the land under the Chrysler Building.  While the land earns a rent of $9 Million a year, it would be difficult to sell in an emergency, yet comprises 84% of the school’s assets.  Combined with the debts accrued for the construction of the school’s new campus building, the article paints a bleak picture of the storied institution’s finances.  “There was never any sense of giving back. Cooper never asked. We always thought Cooper didn’t need the money because it had the Chrysler Building. Forty years ago, I would have stressed to students that someone had to make it possible for you to come here for free.”  Says trustee Thomas Driscoll. (more…)

Art F City is reporting on the fallout from the announcement of Cooper Union’s announced decision to begin charging tuition for its students. Following a tense Q and A yesterday afternoon between students and trustees, a walk-out and large-scale protest ensued, which culminated in staff sealing off school windows to prevent the hanging of banners and and protest signs.  During the meeting, trustees avoided questions about potential future tuition hikes, calling Cooper Union’s public accessibility into further question.  “You could all donate to the school.”  Chairman Mark Epstein said in response to a question about curbing inflation. (more…)

Cooper Union, via Architecture Paper

After almost two years of debate and discussions, The Cooper Union announced yesterday that it will begin charging tuition on a “steeply sliding scale” for undergraduate students.  The tuition will range from $20,000 a year to nothing for those with “the greatest needs.”

A past protest at Cooper Union, via NBC

“The time has come to set our institution on a path that will enable it to survive and thrive well into the future,” said Cooper board chairman, Mark Epstein. “Under the new policy, the Cooper Union will continue to adhere to the vision of Peter Cooper, who founded the institution specifically to provide a quality education to those who might not otherwise be able to afford it.”

Students Circle the Cooper Union for a Symbolic Embrace, via New York Times

While the institution has strived to find an alternative to charging tuition, its sizable debts and interest on property and loans has caused major deficits in its endowment.  The vote for tuition is an attempt to defray those costs.

Class at Cooper Union, via New York Times

While the tuition still places the school’s cost of attendance well below that of other private art schools, such as the Rhode Island School of Design or Pratt Institute, some fear that the increased price will still encourage inequality among students.  “It’s a real tragedy,” said professor Peter Buckley. “It reflects the condition of higher education as a whole. Costs are out of control.”

Read more:
The New York Times
The Wall Street Journal

The New York Times reviews The Cooper Union‘s current struggle to find solutions to their financial deficits.  While the famed art-educational institution has not charged tuition for over one hundred years, current budgetary issues have forced the school to re-evaluate its position.  Now, as a decision on charging undergraduate tuition nears, faculty, students and alumni are immersed in a fervent debate over the school’s future.  “There will be some tough decisions,” says president Jamshed Bharucha said. “There have to be. Because the model that has been in place cannot be sustained.” (more…)