About the DeVos Learning Center
With construction completed in the Spring of 2016, the DeVos Learning Center became the learning hub of the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Museum. This multi-million dollar addition, supported by the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation, provides state-of-the-art learning space for students visiting the Museum. Here, learners of all ages will engage in interactive and meaningful programs that seek to instill the qualities of President and Mrs. Ford: character, integrity, public service, and civic education.
Our Foundation’s education team has carefully designed programs with the needs of your students in mind. Classes provide an opportunity to learn about character through the lens of historical events and are aligned with State and Common Core standards. Students will use the latest in educational technology to interact with the Museum while learning from primary sources such as artifacts, documents, photographs, and video that tell the story of our 38th President. Visitors will gain an understanding of the events that ultimately shaped the character of the man who would come to lead our nation during a tumultuous time in history and return integrity to the White House.
Don Cooper
Director of Civic Initiatives
Don Cooper is the Director of Civic Initiatives at the Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation since July 2023. In that capacity, he leads the civic and educational programs at the DeVos Learning Center (“DVLC”). These programs inspire a rising generation of Americans to active citizenship through initiatives that are rooted in our shared democratic values and exemplified by the lives of the President and Mrs. Ford.
Don brings 20 years’ experience in educational leadership and policy to the DVLC, and a passion for achieving great results for kids. His work has primarily focused on system-level change that empowers parents with more and better choices. His professional experience is diverse. It ranges from serving as an education policy advisor in the Michigan House of Representatives to senior-level public and government affairs positions for leading charter school organizations.
Don currently serves on the boards of directors of the Michigan History Foundation and the Greater Lansing Sports Fund, and on the board of advisors for the National Charter Schools Founders Library.
Don received a Bachelor of Arts in Economics from Hillsdale College and a Master of Public Administration from Central Michigan University. He is currently completing a Ph.D. in Political Science at Wayne State University.