Dr. Paul Prabhaker

Dr. Paul Prabhaker, age 73, of St. Charles, passed away Wednesday,  September 13, 2023, at Central DuPage Hospital in Winfield surrounded by his loving family.

He was born October 31, 1949, in Chennai, India, the son of Herbert and Kokila (Gnananuthu) Rajaiah.

He was raised in Chennai, where he attended the Indian Institute of Technology and the Indian Institute of Management. After graduating, he met the love of his life, Vasanthi and moved to the US. He completed his doctorate at the University of Rochester before settling into the Chicago area, his home for the rest of his life (though he remained a stubborn Buffalo Bills fan). A passionate educator and world traveler, he taught for his entire career at universities including DePaul, Illinois Institute of Technology, and Northern Illinois University and launched academic collaborations between campuses in China, Colombia, France, Greece, India, Mongolia, Spain, Turkey, and more.

He is survived by his wife, Sumanth (Emily) of Northampton, Massachusetts, and Deepak (Corinne) of Williamsburg, Michigan, and by 6 grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents.

Visitation will be held Friday, September 15, 2023 at Malone Funeral Home, 324 East State Street Geneva, up until his funeral service at 11:00 am, with Pastor Jon Bell of Harvest Bible Church.

Burial will follow at Oak Hills Cemetery, Geneva, Illinois.

In lieu of flowers, donations would be appreciated to the Prabhaker Family Scholarship for first generation immigrant students at NIU. Those interested in supporting the fund can visit foundation.myniu.com/give.php and select Prabhaker Family Scholarship for more information, or email Scott Gluck (sgluck@niu.edu).

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