AT15 Lynn Lander

Lynn Lander, ChE’60

Running for:

Council

Campaign Statement

I am passionate about restoring free tuition to Cooper Union, and enhancing the school’s reputation as a seat of academic and social excellence. This will require innovative solutions to decrease expenses and increase revenues. The low hanging fruit has been picked – the really hard stuff begins now. It will be essential to reestablish common goals and working relationships across all constituencies: students, faculty, alumni, administration and the Board of Trustees. An increased era of openness has begun which needs to be nurtured.

We find ourselves in this difficult situation due to poor management of our assets (especially risk management), a lack of realistic creativity, and an appalling lack of openness. We will need the help of major donors. For that to happen we must put our house in order. I believe my skills in risk management, team building, creativity & innovation, cost improvement, and systems thinking, among others, can get us on the path forward. If elected I will listen carefully and work with the Administration and Alumni Association to enhance communications, work to bring all parties together, and help create a sustainable financial plan.

Bio

Education:
B.Ch.E. – The Cooper Union (Class of 1960)
MS Chem E – The Johns Hopkins University
MS Mathematics – New York University, Courant School of Mathematics

Employment:
Unilever 1962-2003
Director and member of the Laboratory Management Committee

  • Director of Project & Knowledge Management; New Products Research; Technical Services
  • Headed a successful Lab-wide cost reduction team
  • Key member of Global Project Management and Risk Management Teams
  • Trained and facilitated business and research teams throughout the world in Project & Risk Mgt.
  • Trained research teams in creativity and innovation skills
  • Trained managerial personnel in goal setting, performance evaluation and career development

Columbia University 2006-2011
Associate Professor of Chemical Engineering

Lander & Associates 2003-2014
Consultants specializing in Project Management Training and Facilitation, Risk Management and Team Leadership

Past Professional Activities:
Unilever Corporate (voting) Representative to the Industrial Research Institute

  • Member of the Research-on-Research Committee
  • Co-founding member of the Process Effectiveness Network

Unilever Representative to the MIT Corporate Relations Program
Associate Editor of the Journal of the American Oil Chemists’ Society
Member of the Detergents Steering Committee of the American Oil Chemists’ Society
President, Association of Research Directors

Cooper Union Activities:

  • Class Representative – Class of 1960
  • Guest Evaluator for Cooper’s Invention Factory
  • Conducted Mock Interview Sessions for Cooper students
  • Residence Counselor at Green Camp (which sadly no longer exists for Cooper students)

Community Activities:
Councilman, Harrington Park, NJ – 7 years
Active as an advisor to local government
President and member, Harrington Park NJ Board of Education – 8 years
President, Northern Valley Joint Boards of Education – 2 years
Board Member, Ridgewood (NJ) Camera Club

Avocations:
Photography
Vegetable Gardening
Travel

My Goals:

  • To return Cooper Union to a sustainable financial condition that will restore free tuition for undergraduates, while maintaining the very highest academic standards.
  • The Schools of Architecture, Art and Engineering are all essential parts of the spirit of The Cooper Union and none should be eliminated to save money.
  • To have our faculty recognized for their excellence throughout the academic world.
  • To have our school known for projects and activities that have social value.
  • To be recognized for supporting deserving students from the New York metropolitan area who might otherwise find it difficult to attend a top-notch college.

Short term goals:

  • Restore a sense of shared community across all segments of the Cooper family – faculty, students, alumni, administration and Board of Trustees.
  • Develop a Mission Statement that includes free tuition for undergraduates. *
  • Hire a President who fully supports our Mission.
  • Develop a financial plan that is sustainable over the long term.

*It may take some time to get back to free tuition. We need to act with urgency, but avoid a quick fix that isn’t sustainable.

Skills that I can bring to Cooper Union’s challenges:

  • Project and Risk Management
  • Creativity and Innovation
  • Team Building
  • Cost Savings techniques
  • Systems Analysis