Kohlis to Receive ‘Friend of the University’ Award
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio — Dr. Chander M. Kohli, a neurosurgeon and former chair of the Youngstown State University Board of Trustees, and his wife, Karen, will receive YSU’s Friend of the University Award June 7 at the Avalon Inn in Warren.
“We are pleased to recognize and honor the Kohlis for their generosity and commitment over many years to YSU and the greater Youngstown community,” said Jim Tressel, YSU president. “On behalf of everyone at the university, we thank you for your continued support.”
The annual Friend of the University Award recognizes the leadership and contributions to YSU and the community . The event enables YSU to acknowledge individuals who have made significant financial or personal commitments to the university and the community.
Last fall, the Kohlis donated $1.1 million to YSU’s “We See Tomorrow” fundraising campaign to create 18 “Classrooms of the Future.” The classrooms will be fully equipped with Cisco Spark Stations — a cloud-based system for wireless presentation, white-boarding and video conferencing. Each will be named the Aneal Mohan Kohli Classroom of the Future, in memory of the Kohli’s late son.
Kohli, a native of India, graduated from the All India Institute of Medical Sciences, New Delhi, and served more than three years in the armed forces of India as a general duty medical officer. He came to the United States in 1966. He did his rotating internship and one-year surgical residency at the Elyria Memorial Hospital in Elyria, and served neurosurgical residencies at the University Hospital, in Edmonton, Canada, and Mercy Hospital, Pittsburgh. He started his private neurosurgical practice in Youngstown in 1972. Karen Kohli practiced as a nurse for several years.
Kohli was a YSU trustee from 1996 to 2005. He has served as president of the Mahoning County Medical Society, a faculty member at Northeast Ohio Medical University, president of the Medical Staff Clinical Executive Committee at St. Elizabeth Hospital Medical Center, and is the founding president of the American Association of South Asian Neurosurgeons. He also has served on the boards at Sky Bank, Humility of Mary Health Services, St. Elizabeth Foundation and the International Institute.
Among Kohli’s many honors are: Man of the Year Award from the India Association of Greater Youngstown, 1984; Distinguished Service Award from the American Association of International Physicians, 1997; Physician Recognition Award from the Mahoning County Medical Society, 2003; Community Service Award from Ohio Gov. Bob Taft, 2005; Community Award Citation from Kenneth Blackwell, Secretary of State of Ohio, 2005; Outstanding Achievement Award from the Youngstown chapter of AAPI, 2005; President and Dean’s Award, NEOMED, 2009; and the Award of Excellence, Outreach & Commitment from the Indian Alliance of Ohio, 2010. In 2012, he also was honored by the American Cancer Society at its 6th annual Cattle Baron’s Ball.
Pictured at top: Chander and Karen Kohli.
SOURCE: YSU News Center.
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