Jackson Free Press

Steven Cooper, the first African American elected to serve as student body president at Mississippi State University, died of cancer around midnight on Nov. 1. He was living in Houston, Texas, at the time of his death.

"Steven was a kind, genuine and sincere person with a heart of gold, and there was nothing he wouldn't do for anyone," Jimmy Abraham, a retired executive director of the MSU Alumni Association, said. "He loved the university and worked hard to make it an even better place for all of its students."

Cooper enrolled at MSU in 1982 and became a student recruiter for a group called the Road Runners and an orientation leader, helping students and their families transition to university life, in the following year. He became the first African American student body president at the university in 1989, and Kelvin Covington became the first African American student body vice president that year.

"Steven went out of his way to assist prospective students and their parents," Abraham said. "He listened closely to students and their concerns, and was always available to help them in any way possible. He was calm and consistent, and in all the time I knew and worked with him, I never saw him get upset or lose his temper."

Following his graduation from MSU, Cooper served as assistant to the mayor of Jackson from 1991 to 1993, director of student affairs at Piney Woods Country Life School from 1993 to 1994, and associate regional director of the Habitat for Humanity South Jackson Regional Office from 1994 to 1995.

He then became the administrator and principal at New Horizon Church International's New Horizon Christian Academy from 1995 to 1998, executive director of Metroplex Economic Development Corporation from 1999 to 2003, senior program officer and director for Foundation for the Mid South's Visionary Leadership Institute from 2003 to 2008, community developer for the Harbach-Ripley Neighborhood Center from 2008 to 2013, and social entrepreneur and senior consultant for AFLAC, World Financial Group and The Five Group, LLC from 2013 to 2016.

Cooper remained active in ministry at New Horizon Church International (1750 Ellis Ave., Suite 200) and spent several years mentoring local youth as part of a church initiative called Promise Keepers. He was also a member of the church choir, drama ministry and singles ministry.

"Steven was a happy fellow who always had encouraging words for others, and it touched my heart to see him lift people up who were feeling down," Joe Hall, an associate minister at New Horizon, said. "Regardless of what you were going through or your circumstance, he motivated people to continue on and be the best they could be, and that was what drew me and so many other people to him. Children gravitated to him as a mentor, and his work drew others around him to follow his example. He was especially devoted to helping children from single parent families.

"He was a man of faith and purpose who believed beyond a shadow of a doubt that there is always a brighter side, and we need more people like that. We need people who can stand up and say that you can get yourself out of any situation through belief in yourself and sacrifice, and that there is nothing you can't accomplish."