Mr. Cooper’s professional interests pertain to transportation safety and accessibility. He authored the State of Arizona’s comments on the Americans with Disabilities Act Accessibility Guidelines 2002 to the U.S. Access Board. He was a member of the Institute of Transportation Engineer’s ad-hoc committee on accessible curb ramps. Mr. Cooper was the principal investigator on the nation’s first study of high-tension cable median barrier to prevent crossover collisions. He wrote the first Finding in the Public Interest in the United States approved by the Federal Highway Administration to specify Smart Cushions at high-frequency crash locations as opposed to selecting the lowest cost attenuator. Mr. Cooper formed and led the team which developed the design for Arizona’s bicycle-friendly cattleguards and policies on cattleguard placement, maintenance, and removal. Mr. Cooper has worked extensively on the design and policies for multi-modal transportation facilities in conjunction with highway construction at both the state and federal levels.

Mr. Cooper has been a member of the American Society of Civil Engineers and its Construction Institute since his student days, when he helped on the University of Arizona’s inaugural concrete canoe effort. He previously served as the Western North Carolina Branch president, and as a member of the national Civil Engineering Technologist Body of Knowledge and Civil Engineering Technologist Grades Brochure task committees. Mr. Cooper also was the chair of the Construction Institute’s Value Engineering Committee. He currently sits on the national Committee on the Civil Engineering Technologist. His work was recognized by his peers with election to Fellow Grade in 2015.