Paul Cooper

Paul Cooper is a licensed architect and principal at TEF Design. An award-winning design practice focused on local and regional development. His diverse portfolio of work in the education, recreation, workplace, and infrastructure sectors reflects his passion for improving communities. Paul began his professional career in Wisconsin at the offices of Eppstein Uhen and Engberg Anderson. He then returned to California, his home state, to work at NBBJ San Francisco. He provided leadership to significant projects at UCLA and the Genomics Institute of the Novartis Research Foundation. He gained retail and community/recreational experience and deepened his higher-education sector experience at Field Paoli before joining TEF, where his projects have included the award-winning Bayview Opera House Renovation; the Bay Area Metro Center; the first net-zero electrical substation, on Larkin Street in San Francisco, for PG&E; and the renovation of Live Oak School. Paul served as president of the San Francisco chapter of the American Institute of Architects (AIA) in 2017, and he is currently serving on the board of the AIA’s California Council. He has also served on several local nonprofit boards in San Francisco. Paul grew up in Chico and earned a B.A. (Bachelor of Architecture) degree from the University of Oregon, with a minor in architectural history.