Professor Cooper is the Gund Professor of Liberal Arts in the Department of Political Science at the University of Vermont. He received his BA in Government at California State University, Sacramento and the M.A. and Ph.D. from the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs of Syracuse University. He has taught at several universities, including Georgia State University, the Nelson Rockefeller College of Public Affairs and Policy of the State University of New York at Albany, and the University of Kansas, with faculty appointments in Public Administration, Political Science, Public Policy, and Law. He has served as Chair of the Department of Political Science at the State University of New York at Albany, Chair of the Department of Public Administration at the University of Kansas, and Director of the Master of Public Administration Program at the University of Vermont.

Active in a variety of leading public administration professional associations and journal editorial boards, Professor Cooper was the first recipient of the Charles Levine Award given by the American Society for Public Administration and the National Association of Schools of Public Affairs and Administration to the person determined to be the nation's outstanding example of excellence in public affairs scholarship, teaching, and service. He is a Fellow of the National Academy of Public Administration. He has also received the Town Government Award given by the Vermont League of Cities and Towns. He is the author of numerous books and articles on public administration, administration law, constitutional law, law and public policy, environmental policy, and sustainable development administration. He has served as a consultant to the United Nations and the World Bank on sustainable development administration. He has also been a consultant to local governments, state and federal agencies, the U.S. Congress, and the White House.