Student Testimonials: Kannan’s Story

Kannan Sockalingam ’00, ’02G was an involved international student at UMaine while working on his bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Electrical Engineering. Two decades after graduation, Kannan remains involved with his alma mater by serving on the OIP Advisory Board and through his philanthropy. His friendships from his student days at UMaine remain strong. Last year, he took his younger son for a UMaine visit, visited several of his UMaine friends, cheered at a UMaine men’s ice hockey game, and went ice fishing. 

Kannan and his brother Senthil Sockalingam ’08, ’10G, also a UMaine alum, created the Sockalingam Family Scholarship as a way to say thank you and pay it forward. Kannan shared, “I truly believe that my success in career and family has a lot to do with my time at UMaine, learning to be an adult, thousands of miles away from home. I fostered long lasting friendships and mentorships from my time there. I still cherish my time at UMaine, and I am in a place in life where I can give back. My guiding questions, if not now, then when? And if it’s not me, then who? This really helped me (with my brother) start an endowed scholarship fund in hopes to give back to the future generations on what we received when we were starting out. Just wanted to say “Thank you.”