Meet Krish and Lakshmi Chilukuri: The Academic Parents Behind Usha Vance

Dr. Krish Chilukuri and Dr. Lakshmi Chilukuri emigrated from India to San Diego in the late 1970s and raised their daughters, Usha and Shreya, in Rancho Peñasquitos. Quietly prominent in academic circles, the Chilukuris built careers in higher education while emphasizing education, family values and cultural roots at home.

AP Photo/Alex BrandonUsha Vance listens as JD Vance speaks at a campaign event at Wollard International

Background and Early Life

Both Krish and Lakshmi were born and raised in India. Krish spent part of his childhood in the village of Vadduru, Andhra Pradesh, before his family moved to Chennai when his father took a physics teaching post at the Indian Institute of Technology around 1959; Krish later attended the same university. After the couple met, they relocated to the United States in the late 1970s and settled in San Diego, where they raised their family.

AP Photo/Steve HelberUsha Vance listens as JD Vance speaks to reporters at Pitt-Greenville Airport

Careers in Academia

Krish Chilukuri is a lecturer in the Department of Aerospace Engineering at San Diego State University. His SDSU biography notes multiple technical publications and several patents, reflecting a long career in engineering education and applied research.

Anna Moneymaker/GettySecond lady Usha Vance delivers remarks to military personnel and their families

Lakshmi Chilukuri is a professor in the Department of Molecular Biology at the University of California, San Diego, where she coordinates the Undergraduate Microbiology Teaching Laboratory—designing curriculum, training Instructional Assistants, and mentoring adjunct faculty. In 2018 she was appointed provost of Sixth College; UC San Diego leadership praised her commitment to undergraduate education, equity and diversity. She also helped launch a pilot course on Race, Ethnicity, and Gender in Biology and Medicine that examines science from multicultural and historical perspectives.

Shannon Finney/GettyUsha Vance and U.S. Vice President JD Vance attend the opening night of "Les Misérables" at The Kennedy Center on June 11, 2025 in Washington, DC.

Values, Family Life and Public Stance

Krish and Lakshmi raised their children in an upper-middle-class San Diego suburb, maintaining cultural ties by speaking Telugu and English at home and raising the family in a Hindu household. Usha has frequently described her upbringing as loving and steady, crediting her parents with encouraging curiosity, reading and intellectual exploration rather than micromanaging every choice.

“I was lucky in that I grew up with incredibly loving parents. They came from a different country. They came voluntarily. They came legally,” Usha said in a 2024 interview, recalling how her parents encouraged books and learning.

Lakshmi has also participated in public advocacy: she was one of more than 2,300 California professors who signed an open letter urging then-President Donald Trump not to withdraw the United States from the Paris climate accords. Reporting in July 2024 noted that Krish and Lakshmi were registered Democrats.

Public Perception and Contrast With JD Vance

Although the Chilukuris have largely stayed out of the spotlight, their stable, education-focused home is often contrasted with JD Vance's account of his upbringing. In his memoir, Vance described his first Thanksgiving visit to Usha's family as strikingly calm and affectionate compared with the family turmoil he experienced in his youth.

Today, Krish and Lakshmi are best known for their long service in higher education and for shaping Usha Vance's formative years—instilling a love of learning, strong family ties and an immigrant story that Usha has highlighted in public remarks.