Over 170 students set to graduate from North Carolina State University were about to get the surprise of a lifetime when they filed into the arena in their red caps and gowns.
As with all graduation speeches, possibilities seemed palpable; hopes and dreams were waiting on the horizon.
Unbeknownst to the scholars, their commencement speaker, Anil Kochhar, had a lifeline planned that would pay off the final year of student loans for every 2026 graduate in the school’s Wilson College of Textiles.
“It is my privilege to announce today that, in honor of my father Prakash Chand Kochhar, my wife Marilyn and I are providing a graduation gift to cover all the final-year education loans incurred by Wilson College graduates,” Kochhar exclaimed.
The announcement earned raucous cheers and numerous rounds of applause from everyone in attendance. Instantly, 176 students who were receiving bachelor’s degrees and 26 who were receiving master’s degrees had an entire year of college debt wiped away. (Watch the joyful moment below…)
“Marilyn and I hope that all of you leave Reynolds Coliseum today not only with a degree but with greater freedom to pursue your goals, take risks, and build the lives you’ve worked so hard to achieve.”
The man’s father, Prakash Chand Kochhar, emigrated from India to Raleigh, North Carolina, 80 years ago to study textile manufacturing in America. He was believed to be only the second student from India to ever enroll at the university. Kochhar eventually earned his bachelor’s degree in textile manufacturing in 1950 and his master’s degree in the same program in 1952.
His textile engineering skills soon led to success in a career that criss-crossed several states as part of a global textiles company. He passed away in 1985, but his legacy continued with a scholarship that has been in existence for the last 40 years—and it carried on when his son spoke into the microphone on the graduation stage.
“My father could not have imagined this moment. Not just me standing here, but all of you sitting here,” the younger Kochhar said in his speech. “A new generation, shaped by a different world, but connected by the same spirit of possibility that brought him here decades ago. And that’s what today represents.”
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Suddenly, a new group of graduates was heading out into the world with an unexpected head start provided by their graduation speaker. And an assist from a former student who chased down the American dream all the way from India.
Alyssa D’Costa, a fashion and textile management major, told the College what the gift meant to her. “As a daughter of immigrants myself, this money helps me and my family a lot, and I’m really fortunate to have an opportunity like this.”
What her generous benefactor remembers most about his father is his spirit: “The look in his eyes told me anything is possible.”
Watch the video from NC State below…
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