Impact of Giving
ALUMNI NEWS MAGAZINE | Summer 2024
When students return in September, they'll be greeted by an inspiring sight. UNB’s Engineering Commons at Head Hall will change the landscape of the campus while creating new opportunities for engineering education and research.
Many alumni, businesses and friends of the university have contributed to the project, but the man who got the ball rolling with a $1.1 million foundational gift is William (Bill) Press Cooper, P.Eng., FCSCE (BScCE’62), and he is hoping others will join him at any level of giving. Bill’s gift will be directed to the construction of the new atrium and the lobby outside the Dineen Auditorium, together with the seminar room outside the Student Success Centre.
Bill graduated from UNB’s civil engineering program in 1962. After graduation, he went to work at Cooper Construction, a third-generation family-owned construction and real estate development company in Oakville, Ont., working his way up to president and Chief Executive Officer in 1978. Under his leadership, the company has become an industry pioneer in design/build and expanded to commercial and industrial real estate development, as well as facilities management.
Since 1976, Bill has supported many initiatives at UNB, including multiple campaigns, the President’s Fund, renovations to Maggie Jean Chestnut residence (home of Renaissance College) and the 225th anniversary celebrations. The one dearest to his heart is the William P. Cooper Scholarship he established in 2005 to support civil engineering students at UNB. He was inducted into UNB’s Engineering Wall of Fame in 2020.
Bill says that UNB had taught him the value of keeping his family’s business at the leading edge of engineering practice and technology. When he heard about the Engineering Commons initiative, he wanted to ensure its success.
“I’ve had the privilege of working with universities on several buildings, and I have seen the transformational impact that a purpose-built structure can have on education and innovation. When I learned of this project, I was struck by the significance and wanted to be part of it and I hope others do too.”
The Engineering Commons will create 18,400 square feet of new space in a three-storey mass timber and glass structure. The commons project also includes some renovations in neighbouring spaces in Head Hall, making way for the renewal of 22,800 square feet of existing infrastructure. These improvements will support UNB’s focus on growth, sustainability and prosperity through cutting-edge engineering teaching and research.
By expanding the lobby of Head Hall and creating new learning, research, meeting and teaching spaces, the commons will foster enrolment and increased economic impact, including more training of talented, job-ready engineers, more applied research, and more knowledge transfer from research labs to Canada’s industrial economy.
UNB President Paul Mazerolle says, “Bill Cooper is a distinguished example of all that one can achieve with a UNB education in engineering. With this gift, he is passing the torch of innovation and leadership to the next generation and challenging other alumni to help our university remain at the forefront of engineering education.”
Murdock & Boyd Architects produced the Engineering Commons design in consultation with UNB’s faculty of engineering, and EllisDon is managing the construction. The building is scheduled to be completed in June and will be ready for students and faculty in September.
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