Thursday, November 3, 2011

'Gesture of unity' yesterday at Cooper Union


In response to news that Cooper Union might establish an annual tuition, students and faculty members decided yesterday afternoon to hold classes outdoors to raise awareness of the situation.

This is how third-year student Christian Hincapie described what happened to me via email:

"As a symbol of solidarity among the Cooper Union Community, student, staff and faculty decided to walk-out, work-out, and act out. The studios were brought outside, classes were held in front of the Foundation building and people generally hung out and communed. This was a gesture of unity among the Cooper Union Community that was organized by students in order to communicate to the administration and the President that tuition CAN NOT be on the table. The principles and integrity of the school are at danger if tuition continues to be an option."


Said student Pete Halupka (via email):

"I have attended four other schools besides The Cooper Union. I left every one of those four schools pushing to attend a program and institution like The Cooper Union. That is a school driven by motivated, talented intellectuals and creatives, need blind, and, therefore, creating a tightly knit, highly selective body of passionate individuals. Most importantly, it is not a business. It is not an institution which crafts their decisions around growth and profit."


Hincapie also shot this video...



Runnin' Scared has more on this story here.

Photos by Pete Halupka

7 comments:

  1. Pete Halupka, glad you're in the VISUAL arts! But then who am I to concerned for grammatizational state of creatives?

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  2. Unfortunately, someone forgot to tell the students and instructors that Cooper is now all about growth and real estate development, as well as half million dollar salaries for the Pres. and deans.

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  3. Bunch of spoiled brats. Give them tuition and keep St. Marks Bookstore.

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  4. Schools like this are needed now more than ever with the skyrocketing cost of education putting so many in this country in crazy amounts of debt. I have no idea why there is always so much hostility on these boards to a school that has been in the neighborhood for 150 years, which is to say it's been here way longer than any of us. Everyone gets all worked up about some hat shop or gallery or bookstore closing but nobody seems to care about the potential loss of a culture that has produced thousands of architects, artists, and engineers, many of whom otherwise would not have had access to this level of education.

    Ah whatever, just give me more old stories about snow penises (peni?) please.

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  5. You are right, evflip. I'm not the best writer. That's why I'm a student. But I did feel that I needed to speak.

    I'm happy that both you and I are concerned for the grammatical state of ME! I appreciate your concern and let me reassure you that I attend writing center appointments weekly.

    Also, these are not my photographs and what I've said above was stated on a Tumblr post of the photographs I made of that day.

    http://peterhalupka.tumblr.com/post/12273641031/keep-the-cooper-union-free-as-air-and-water

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  6. they should read this blog if they really want to know everything their brass is up to.

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  7. Protesting necessary austerity measures when funds run dry is a little like railing against the sky, when it rains.

    "Symbol of solidarity"? That, and $2.50, will get you a cup of coffee.

    ReplyDelete

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