Kochhars Share Words of Wisdom and Life-Changing News at Wilson Commencement
Anil Kochhar, son of the late Wilson College of Textiles alumnus Prakash Chand Kochhar ’50, ’52, recently made a transformational investment in the college’s leadership, graduate students and faculty, announced in late March.
At the college’s May 8 commencement, while making a few remarks during the ceremony about how his father inspired these endowments, the younger Kochhar and his wife, Marilyn, shared additional, life-changing news for the May graduates who took out loans during their final year as students at NC State.
“It is my privilege to announce today that, in honor of my father Prakash Chand Kochhar, Marilyn and I are providing a graduation gift to cover all the final-year education loans incurred by Wilson College graduates during the 2025–26 academic year,” Kochhar said.
“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.”
David Hinks, the inaugural Prakash Chand Kochhar Dean at Wilson College of Textiles, was thrilled when Kochhar shared this intention and asked if the plan was possible. Hinks and the college leadership quickly coordinated with NC State’s Office of Scholarships and Financial Aid to ensure the Kochhars’ vision could come to fruition.
“I could not be more grateful to Anil and Marilyn for this extraordinary investment in our newest Wilson for Life alumni,” Hinks said. “As the preeminent institution for textiles education, research and innovation, we are deeply committed to ensuring the Wilson College enables students from all walks of life to transform their own lives while graduating with zero or low debt. One of our primary goals is to make the Wilson College affordable for all, and Anil and Marilyn are helping us achieve it.
“The Kochhar family continues to build on Prakash Chand Kochhar’s inspiring legacy in ways that will forever impact our alumni and future students.”
The announcement generated enthusiasm, excitement and emotion as the newly minted graduates — and their families and loved ones in attendance — realized what having the senior year loans paid for would mean.
“As a daughter of immigrants, this money helps me and my family a lot, and I’m really fortunate to have an opportunity like this,” said Alyssa D’Costa, a fashion and textile management major. She received her bachelor’s degree on May 8 and will complete her master’s degree in the spring, as part of the college’s Accelerated Bachelor’s/Master’s program.
The gift builds on the concept of Wilson for Life: the college’s commitment to providing lifetime support to its students and alumni with differentiated, continuous and impactful learning and training, professional development and career support, and worldwide networking experiences.
Reducing debt and maintaining affordability is key to helping students feel empowered to say yes to new opportunities without worrying about financial barriers — and an extension of NC State’s land-grant mission.
“My father could not have imagined this moment. Not just me standing here, but all of you sitting here,” Kochhar said. “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.”
A Legacy of Support
“Eighty years ago, a young man traveled thousands of miles from India to Raleigh with little more than hope and determination. He could not have known where that journey would lead. He could not have imagined the life it would create, or that one day his son would stand here speaking to a graduating class at the very institution that welcomed him,” Anil Kochhar shared.
Born in Punjab, India, Prakash Chand Kochhar’s passion for textiles led him to pursue training and roles focused on cotton spinning, weaving and finishing. He arrived at NC State in 1946, earning his bachelor’s degree in textile manufacturing in 1950 and his master’s degree in the same program in 1952. His textile engineering career took him across several U.S. states and around the world, and these experiences helped him envision the legacy he hoped to leave behind — one rooted in education, opportunity and community. Learn more about his family continues to strengthen his legacy at NC State:
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