Who is the man behind NC State’s surprise student debt cancellation?
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Anil Kochhar canceled all senior-year debt for NC State Wilson College students.
- Kochhar continued his father's legacy of giving to NC State's Wilson College of Textiles.
- Kochhar, 69, lives in California and is a certified actuary for Axene Health Partners.
At a commencement ceremony this month, Anil Kochhar astonished graduating NC State students in the Wilson College of Textiles by canceling all the student debt they had incurred during their senior year.
But the humble Raleigh native can hardly believe he’s now considered a “philanthropist.”
Kochhar’s father travelled from Punjab, India, to Raleigh in 1946 to study textile manufacturing at NC State. He earned both his bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Wilson College, and went on to have a career that allowed him to travel the country and the world. While studying at NC State, he met his wife, a girl from Elkin. When he died in 1986, he willed that a scholarship to Wilson College be set up in his name.
His son, the younger Kochhar, attended Broughton High School before he enrolled at NC State. During college, he transferred to UNC-Chapel Hill.
Now though, at 69, he’s quite clear on where his allegiances lie.
“It’s not Chapel Hill, it’s NC State’s Wilson College for life,” Kochhar told The News & Observer. “For my parent, I will do what I can to support this college, because they received my father, and so NC State forever is fantastic with me.”
He’s chosen to continue his father’s legacy of giving to Wilson College. That’s why the dean of the school is known as the Prakash Chand Kochhar Dean.
But this idea — to cancel final-year student debt for the graduating class — was a moment of inspiration. He had been wanting to find a way to support the current students.
The last time NC State approached Kochhar about the possibility of more giving, it was a serendipitous day. He was visiting Raleigh and decided to check with his investment bank to see what he was working with. They had very good news for him.
Kochhar felt like it was his dad, somehow making that money appear from beyond the grave.
“It happened because it was right,” Kochhar said. “I’m grateful that there was money to share. It was my father, Prakash Chand Kochhar, all the way, and the faith I have in the great creator, and my wife, Marilyn. She’s the best. She’s beautiful.”
The response to his gift has been enormous, Kochhar said. There have been hundreds of news articles about it, NC State told him. He’s even heard from family, friends, and strangers back in India who are sharing in the happiness.
Kochhar also gives to Daraja Academy, which provides educational opportunities for girls in Kenya. But all the attention around this recent act of generosity at NC State has energized him.
“Now I’m documented on the great viral web as a philanthropist,” Kochhar said. “So I’m gonna move on and see what else I can do to be useful.”
Kochhar now lives in California, working as a certified actuary for Axene Health Partners. He can hardly believe the growth that the Triangle has seen since he graduated from UNC all those years ago.
He doesn’t come to North Carolina often, but when he does, he always makes sure to visit his mother’s grave in Elkin.
And when he comes east to the Triangle, he never misses a meal at Pure Soul, a vegan soul food restaurant in Durham.
“So much time has passed, but it’s a great town. The people are so nice,” Kochhar said.
