Indian-American philanthropists made headlines this year through their generous contributions, especially to American universities. A few months ago, textile industry executive Anil Kochhar and his wife Marilyn announced they would pay the education loan of the graduating students of the Wilson College of Textiles, North Carolina State University. This included 176 bachelor’s students and 26 master’s students.The major announcement shed light on the Indian-American philanthropists helping students in America in memory of their own student life in the US.Noe, Jyoti Bhatia, and Nishi Bhatia announced the creation of an endowment to support graduate fellowships for students at the University of Texas. The fellowship is named ‘The Nishi and Jyoti P Bhatia Fellowship’. A collaboration space on the first floor of the Engineering and Computer Science West Building at the university in Dallas has been named after them.
Who are the Bhatias?
Jyoti Bhatia is a proud alumna of UT Dallas. He earned his degree in international management studies from the university. His children also graduated from UT Dallas. “I earned my graduate degree here, and later, two of our children also graduated from UT Dallas,” he said. “Because of that connection, this university holds a special place in our hearts.”Jyoti Bhatia is a known name in the community because of his involvement in the Hindu Temple of North Texas, the India Association of North Texas, the Asian Chamber of Texas and Lions Clubs International.Jyoti Bhatia’s wife Nishi Bhatia came to the US to study at the University of Kentucky. Then she built a career as an educator in the Plano Independent School District. “This is a very meaningful day for my husband and myself,” Nishi Bhatia said. “We are honored to have our names associated with this collaboration space, and we accept this recognition with gratitude, appreciation and pride.”
Nishi and Jyoti P Bhatia Fellowship
The university said that the first recipients of the fellowships will be selected in the fall. Students will benefit from expanded resources, meaningful spaces for collaboration and financial aid that removes barriers to their education.“The students who will benefit from [these fellowships] have already earned their place through hard work and perseverance,” Nishi Bhatia said. “If financial assistance can remove one obstacle and allow them to focus on learning, research, innovation and discovery, then we believe it is a worthwhile investment.”“What we hope to provide is simply an open door,” Nishi Bhatia said. “And perhaps one day, when life has blessed [these students] with more than they need, they will choose to open doors for others.”
