I was not one of Prof. Brazinsky's students, but I have many fond memories of him during my time at Cooper Union. I know personally and through others of his intense love for the institution, and he will be sorely missed.

When I first came to Cooper Union in 1993, I came to Irv to ask him about how my core assignments - teaching quantum mechanics and introductory thermodynamics - fit into the ChemE department's curriculum. He took time to explain to me how important these topics were as part of a chemical engineer's education, and how the subjects helped sharpen their analytical skills. Little did I know that by reaching out to him, I had opened the floodgates to hundreds of positive, warm and entertaining conversations about Cooper Union, New York, the Yankees, basketball, theater, family, Judaism...and little did I know that I'd become friends with one of the warmest, most generous people I've ever known. He mentored many other young faculty, not always in his own department, to successful careers. Before and since his passing, I've heard stories from many of his former students about how he impactfully gave them the advice they needed to succeed. He was completely student-centered in everything he did here. In short, Irv was a mensch who gave his all to Cooper Union. May his memory be a blessing for all of us who knew and loved him.


Prof. Brazinsky was my instructor for the Cooper Union summer program that I attended during high school, and definitely piqued my interest in engineering to want to apply and attend Cooper Union.  I never had him as a professor, but he was a such a friendly and open person to interact with at various Cooper Union events including my involvement with the basketball program.  RIP Professor.

I had Professor Brazinsky for several classes during my time at Cooper between 2011 and 2015. He was always very kind and happy to chat in his office, the hallway, or in Frankie's. After I graduated from Cooper I went to MIT for my Masters in Chemical Engineering and he was so proud of me when I got in. He gave me a book that he wrote while he was a grad student while he was TAing a class. and I spoke to him several times on the phone during my time at MIT. I will always cherish the time I spent and spoke with him. 

Irv was loved by his students and coworkers because he was warm, friendly and loved to schmooze. He and I were invited to our student's  (Renee Hamoui) wedding in Brazil. He loved to travel and and enjoyed the company of his students. He, Rosalie, and my family, along with 6 other students attended Renee and Allen’s wedding. It was a great time outside of Cooper that we got to spend together. It was a time I will not forget.

We bonded over our love for the german language. He told me how he should have taken Technical German instead of an Engineering Problem Solving class in High School, which would have made his German teacher proud.  He once impressed us with perfect german during his advanced Thermodynamics class, when Lucas, who was visiting me from Germany sat in on his class. 
He was always so enthusiastic during his classes, he had a deep understanding of his field and could explain difficult subjects clearly and spontaneously. He took the lecture time seriously and whenever he couldn´t make a class he would organize make-up lessons with the entire class. He was an excellent commander of the classroom, not tolerating anything but reciprocated discipline and respect from his students, which provided for the collective focus during the lecture, an ideal learning environment.

Before returning to Germany for Medical School he lent me his books from his German Studies, including the Dictionary he had won from being a top honor Student in German at Stuyvesant High School. It was a great honor. 
I looked forward to our telephone calls every few weeks over the past years. I enjoyed hearing about how everything was going in Virginia, about how his wife and family were doing and he always remembered and was up to date on what my family and I were up to.  
It made me so happy when he came to my Wedding and the Baptism of my son in the summer of 2019, he took the train from Virginia all the way up to Brooklyn. My family and I were extremely touched and honored.   We are heartbroken to hear he is no longer with us.
We never got to have our Reunion with Joe, my father, Mike, Lucas, Liam, and some of the Cooper gang at the Second Avenue Deli like we were planning.  Professor Brazinsky or „ Braz“ as we endearingly called him was a great man and very dear to our hearts. My family and I miss him dearly . We send our heartfelt condolences to Professor Brazinsky´s family.

Professor Brazinsky is a legend, a man of great accomplishments and interests, from Stuyvesant High School, to the Cooper Union, to MIT, to NASA, Splenda, and Proctor and Gamble, He was an Athlete excelling at Basketball and Baseball and immensely interested in History and Politics, among countless other areas. He would find common interests with anybody and strike up conversations for hours. He was extremely intelligent and kind, had a great sense of humor, and was humble despite his long list of achievements and experiences. He was also extremely loyal and devoted to his students, the Cooper Union, and what he believed in. He was very generous and hard-working.
He sincerely cared about all those around him and he would actively inquire about the health and well-being of colleagues and their families especially when he knew they were going through a tough time. He also had a very warm and familiar sense about him. He went above and beyond to do whatever he could to help his students. When meeting with him in his office, he always had a good story and you felt uplifted, with newfound motivation and assurance that everything was going to be alright.
He also had a great way of speaking, with colorful intonations that made everything he said more exciting and had you hanging on every word. I can still hear his fantastic voice in my head. 
He always spoke with such enthusiasm, especially about his favorite subjects: Thermodynamics, Splenda, Cooper Cooler, Basketball, Books, Culture. He would light up and be all smiles. As long as I have known him he has always been filled with such energy and vivacity.
There was never a dull moment with Professor Brazinsky.
I will always be extremely grateful for all that Professor Brazinsky did for me 
when I returned to Cooper in 2014 to complete my Master´s, after studying and working in Germany for four years. He helped me immensely in my career and my personal growth. He was a Professor, an advisor, a mentor, and a friend.

I remember Irv as an enthusiastic basketball player at Cooper Union 
who once scored 35 poins in a game with a great set shot; additionally an outstanding scholar who achieved a B in differential equations class, everyone else scored lower. He will be sorely missed.

Bernie Rubin

Among the many lessons this legend of a professor has shared with us, I carry a few in my mind and often repeat them to my own students, as well: (1) I'd rather do a little in a lot than a lot a little (referring to the fact that it's better to have a narrower focus, wherein one can truly immerse,  than to try to grasp too many things all at once); (2) intuit it; (3) plugging in is for technologists - we substitute numbers in....It's rare to interact with such a good soul; Prof. Brazinsky really was a kindhearted, caring, and giving person. I loved all my classes with him and I learned quite a bit from him about engineering and beyond. He never shied away from talking super interesting history, politics, sports, and, of course, engineering. His approach to his students and to pedagogy really inspired me to become a professor myself and I'm truly thankful that I was able to meet and interact with him. Rest in peace Professor; you'll be missed!

Tell THEM what you’re going to tell THEM.  Tell THEM.  And tell THEM what you told THEM. 
So Irv Brazinksy told us when we stood in front of him, at the chalkboard, ready to show the class how to solve a thermodynamics homework question.  And in that vein, I am going to tell you that Irv was more than a great teacher; he was a Renaissance man and a friend.    
In the classroom, Irv’s mantra was simple: do the reading, take good notes, do the homework problems, ask questions, reread your notes, and redo the problems.  And then repeat.  He had credit with me because he too was once a Cooper Union student, one who had struggled at times.  There were no shortcuts.  The Cooper Union I remember was one of the last true meritocracies.  Sweat equity brought the grades.  
To Irv, the answer was just part of the journey.  I remember him pulling me aside one day and wading through six pages of an answer I had written for a Heat Transfer test.  He excitedly showed me the one math mistake that created the wrong answer because he wanted to make sure I understood that my reasoning was correct.  These skills will serve you long past your years in school, he said.  
Walk into his office with a Thermo question and you’d leave with an answer, but only after a discussion about John Adams, or Robert Oppenhemier, or Mayor Lindsay.  
We stayed in touch after I graduated and Irv made sure that I finished what I had started—my Master’s.  He also was one of the first people to encourage me to go to law school, providing a series of Abe Lincoln anecdotes along the way.   
Irv was like the Albert Nerken building he taught in for years.  Not glitzy, but solid and functional.  A beacon for bright young minds.  I am a proud “Nerken” in part because of him.   
I tell you all this because I did not get to properly thank Irv for what he did for me, or The Cooper Union.  —Ron Vogel, 2001 ChE.  

Professor Irv Brazinsky was my first research mentor. I absolutely loved his Thermodynamics class. He gave me a problem to work on that was a follow-up on earlier research of his, and his early encouragement was instrumental in launching my career as an academic researcher, setting me on the path to becoming a Professor myself. 

He was always so cheerful and full of good humor. I have this sweet memory of showing up to Prof. Brazinsky's office for a research meeting once, and his regaling me with photos and some entertaining stories from his then-recent cruise to Alaska instead... there was something so wonderful and warm about that interaction that has always stayed with me.



I first spoke to Irv in 1992. I knew I was moving from Pittsburgh to New York and “cold called” him to talk about the possibilities of working at The Cooper Union. We talked for over three hours. That conversation was the beginning of a long dialog about all things Cooper and a dizzying number of other topics. I joined Cooper in 1994 and Irv was the Chair of my department, Chemical Engineering. In many ways he was my leader, advisor, role model, Devil’s advocate and, always, my friend. Irv was deeply devoted to The Cooper Union and the well-being of the students, the institution and all those who worked at his alma mater. He and I collaborated in leading the faculty union for a number of years and he was tireless in ensuring that The Cooper Union remained, firstly and fore mostly, an institution of teaching excellence. He was always kind and considerate, he and his wife embraced me and my partner as friends and we enjoyed periodic dinners together and truly wonderful conversations late into the night. I shall miss him. The Cooper Union lost a good one when he retired and now we have all lost a scholar and a gentlemen.

Richard Stock

Sincere condolences and deepest sympathy to the family.  🙏 I meet Professor at Cooper Union. We had  many chats in Frankie's Kitchen about his lovely wife, whom he truly loved and was forever dedicated to. 

In Frankie's, over coffee, we also talked about football. When he learned I was a  Philadelphia Eagles fan, he talked excitedly about one of his favorite movies, Silver Linings Playbook.  Every time the movie came on tv, he'd ask me did you watch the movie? Every single time (smiles). Just one of many fond memories. May Irv's kind and gentle soul rest in peace.
Deirdre L. Kennedy

OBITUARY

Irving Brazinsky

27 October, 1936 – 14 April, 2022

Demaine Funeral Home

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