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Alumnus becomes well-known name in local car business

June 8, 2018

Tracy Cooper (’86) worked in production for Liberty University founder Dr. Jerry Falwell Sr.’s “Old-Time Gospel Hour” television show during his senior year and for six months after graduation. He earned a degree in communication with an emphasis in radio and television broadcasting and a minor in journalism.

“I found if I really wanted to go into broadcasting, I had to jump around,” said Cooper, who was interested in staying in the Lynchburg area where his future wife, Linda Nell Cooper, now chair of Liberty’s Department of Theatre Arts, was still pursuing her degree at Liberty. “So I stepped into the automotive business temporarily, and now, nearly 32 years later, I’m still here. It has worked out really well.”

His father was an automobile sales representative for many years when Cooper was growing up in Illinois.

“That’s what motivated me to get into it. I started out on the sales floor with Royal Oldsmobile Nissan in Lynchburg in the late 1980s, which became Buick Chevrolet Cadillac and was purchased by Pinkerton Chevrolet in 2013,” said Cooper, who is now a used car sales manager at Pinkerton.

The career shift came smoothly for Cooper, who found his degree to have many applications.

“The degree as a whole in communication was very valuable,” said Cooper. “It is a well-rounded degree, and it gives you a big advantage with the wide array of knowledge you attain. You learn to be a good communicator and develop presentation and interviewing skills.”

Now, Liberty students have the opportunity to specialize in this field through the new automotive dealership management program in the School of Business.
As a sales manager, Cooper oversees the used car department’s $2-3 million monthly inventory, a four- to six-member detail department staff, 12-15 sales representatives, and numerous service technicians.

“People have kind of a preconceived idea of what they’re going to deal with when they come to a car lot,” Cooper said. “This industry needs people who are fair and honest. That’s what I bring with the Christian worldview education I received at Liberty — someone you can trust. That’s why my company keeps me in this position because of the honesty and integrity I bring with me to the job.”

His daughter, Teagan, has followed in her parents’ footsteps and is now a sophomore at Liberty studying theatre arts.

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