Anudeep Kaur, 22, a business student at Humber Polytechnic North campus, died in a Brampton house fire on Nov. 20, a blaze that also killed four other members of her family.
The fire occurred shortly after 2 a.m. near Remembrance Road and McLaughlin Road.
Four of her family members died in the fire, and four are in the hospital.
Police said the fire is not suspicious, and the Ontario Fire Marshal is continuing its investigation into the cause.
Kaur was a third-year student in Business Administration and Operations Management, who would have graduated in the spring of 2026.
She worked as an event staff member for the Humber Hawks Nation.
“It is a tough time for Humber, Humber Hawks Nation, and all of the people who knew Anudeep well. However, that pales in comparison to the impact on her family and loved ones," said Michael Kopinak, associate director at Humber Athletics and Recreation.
"In consideration of them, there is little more we can say at this time beyond that Anudeep was a valued member of our community and she will be missed," he said. "We will continue to connect with Anudeep's family to offer support and, at some point, in the future, acknowledge her contributions and achievements with us.”
Associate Dean at the Longo's Faculty of Business, James Cullin, said he met Kaur earlier in the year during the support staff strike as she came to talk about work placement.
“I myself am shocked," Cullen said. "As an associate dean, I do not speak to the majority of the students, but I did have the opportunity to speak with her in September. She was a very proactive student, and as you recall from the strike, some functions of the institution were put on pause, including certain elements related to workplace placement.
"She had been very proactive and worked out a work placement arrangement, but when she went to talk with the placement advisor, that person was in a labour disruption, so she sought me out," he said. "This is very rare. The vast majority of students don't reach out.”
Kaur had her work placement at Wireless DNA Inc. in the fall semester.
Cullin said that she was a student who was dedicated to her work.
“I found her very well organized, very thoughtful, and in that moment I kind of became the faculty placement advisor informing her to do X, Y and Z. She did that with speed and efficiency,” he said.
Cullin said his conversation with her left him hopeful about what she will go on to do in her future. He said she had a life plan laid out for herself before her passing.
“In my conversation with her, I remember she anticipated entering the workforce after she graduated, and in January, she had a game plan for a full-time job and for how she was going to progress within the world of business, broadly in the retail sector," he said. "She had a very clear, set plan.
"Her placement by all accounts was very successful. The future is unknowable, but I had this sense that she had a career ahead of her in retail management, if she wanted,” Cullin said.
Cullin said the faculty were impressed with Kaur’s persistence to always do better.
“The faculty has responded with sadness," he said.
"One of the faculty members sat with me and described how two weeks previously she had wrapped up a Microsoft Excel assignment. She came back the following week to her teacher to show him how she took the basis of her previous assignment, reworked the order placement and showed him how she integrated her learning into something that assisted her in her placement.” Cullin said.
“Then, as I understood it, her manager at the placement had applauded her and thanked her and agreed that the way in which she organized this spreadsheet was better than the one that they had previously in that location," he said.
"He told me she always sat in front of the class. She was extremely engaged in her course. He was visibly shaken when he was informed by the Dean of Students what had happened,” he said.
Cullin said he has no information regarding any conversation between the faculty and the family, as that is not in his position to oversee or conduct.
“She was a very well-spoken, proactive, extremely well-organized student who came to me because she wanted to move forward on her required field placement," he said. "She understood what she had to do, and she brought all the materials to the placement advisor at the end of the labour disruption, and I noticed she already passed that course.”
Cullin said he enjoyed their discussion.
“I found her to be a very wonderful conversationalist. As she was leaving my office, I remember thinking she is going to do well in her future career. She embodied everything she has learned at Humber and aligned it with very good interpersonal habits,” he said.
Jugraj Singh, whose wife Arshveer is Kaur's cousin, launched a GoFundMe account to support the family, and the community responded by donating more than $120,000 so far. He said the family lost everything in the fire.
