Felix “Cooper” Adamo
Spring 2021 John Jay Fellow
Hometown: Bakersfield, CA
College: California State University, Bakersfield
Degree: Bachelor of Science in Mathematics
Felix “Cooper” Adamo graduated cum laude from California State University, Bakersfield (CSUB) in the Spring of 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics, concentration in Applied Mathematics and a Minor in Philosophy. At CSUB, he was a Division I collegiate Track & Field athlete. Upon graduation, Cooper was inducted into CSUB’s Roadrunner Society and was a recipient of the Golden Circle Award, the highest achievable honors for a graduating senior and graduating scholar-athlete to receive, respectively.
Outside of his academics, Cooper takes a great interest in philosophy, particularly theology, metaphysics, & political philosophy. In the Summer of 2018, he interned for 2018 House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy in his local district office and his Capitol Hill offices. From 2018 to 2019, he was a catechetical leader for his local parish’s RCIA (Rite of Christian Initiation of Adults) program. Since 2019, he was done freelance research for Priests for Life and for Sophia Institute Press, exploring current Catholic Church politics and a history of philosophy in relation to the Catholic Church.
After his graduation, Cooper started as an intern with the David Valadao for Congress campaign team in June 2020. Fairly soon after, he was hired on as a field organizer and was eventually promoted to regional field director, managing the campaign’s volunteer program in the southern region as the only campaign staffer there. With Cooper’s work and the work of his entire campaign team, David Valadao won the 2020 congressional election for California’s 21st congressional district.
The areas of mathematics, politics, & education are all potential paths for Cooper to take. He hopes that the John Jay Fellowship Program will help him discern which path to take and to make him a formidable leader with a sharpened mind, incorporating Classical, Christian, & American values in all that he does and will do.