Anil Kochhar, a North Carolina State University donor, surprised graduates of the Wilson College of Textiles by announcing he would pay off their senior-year student loans during his keynote commencement address on 8 May. The Indian American entrepreneur told the audience: 'I hope that all of you leave … today not only with a degree but with greater freedom to pursue your goals, take risks and build the lives that you’ve worked so hard to achieve.'
The announcement prompted loud cheers, applause and a standing ovation from the graduates and attendees. Video of the speech quickly went viral online. About 43 million people in the US carry student loan debt totalling nearly $1.7tn, and those who have received loan forgiveness often describe it as transformative.
Among the degree recipients was Alyssa D’Costa, who said: 'As a daughter of immigrants, this money helps me and my family a lot.' Kochhar and his wife, Marilyn, decided to make the gesture in honour of Anil’s late father, Prakash Chand Kochhar, an alumnus of the university. He was born in Punjab, India, and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in textile manufacturing from NC State in 1950 and 1952.
Anil Kochhar, co-founder of a healthcare technology software company, said his father '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.' David Hinks, dean of the Wilson College of Textiles, called the gift 'an extraordinary investment in our newest … alumni.'
The ceremony, held at the William Neal Reynolds Coliseum, saw 176 students receive bachelor’s degrees and 26 receive master’s degrees. Kochhar concluded his speech by saying: 'Graduates, the world is waiting for what you create – with no friggin’ last-year debt. Go get ’em.'
