$30 million new naming gift to school of nursing from Joe C. Wen raises his giving to over $100 million
Following a $30 million gift from an entrepreneurial alum, UCLA’s nursing institution will become the UCLA Joe C. Wen School of Nursing, officials announced.
The donation will support the nursing school’s research, programming, and innovation, officials said in a press release. It marks the first time a UCLA school has been named for an Asian American leader, businessman Joe C. Wen.
Wen’s donation is the largest in the nursing school’s 76-year history, officials said.
It will support the school’s four academic healthcare programs, serving around 600 students, from baccalaureate candidates seeking entry-level professional nursing roles to doctoral degree learners pursuing nursing practice and innovation.
The donation will also help further the school’s research, which officials said has led to past advances in both evidence-based nursing and technology.
This gift will have “an immediate and profound impact on communities here in Southern California—especially in today’s challenging health care landscape — by funding research and advancing AI technology in health care,” Wen said in the news release.
Founded in 1949, UCLA’s program was home to the first undergraduate nursing program west of the Mississippi, and was the first in California to confer a master of Science in Nursing degree.
“Nurses are the backbone of health care. In the span of our lives, a nurse is often the first and last person we see, a constant presence in our most vulnerable moments,” UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk said in the release.
“This extraordinary gift from Joe C. Wen and his family honors that vital role. It expands our ability to educate the next generation of nurse leaders and faculty, those who will care for people across their lifetimes and help fulfill UCLA’s mission to improve lives through education, service, and innovation in health.”
Both master’s and bachelor’s of science degree programs at the UCLA nursing school have been ranked among the top 10 by the U.S. News and World Report.
“I am profoundly grateful to Joe and his family for understanding the value of nursing with this incredible gift,” said Lin Zhan, dean of the nursing school, in the release. “This historic and visionary investment enables us to continue our legacy of innovation, leadership, and excellence; to prepare exceptional nurses and leaders across health care ecosystems; and to elevate the school to fulfill our mission and goals.”
Wen, who now resides in Orange County, immigrated with his family from Taiwan as a teenager and graduated from UCLA with a bachelor’s degree in economics in 1998.
He launched his first business in 2003, which evolved into Formosa Ltd., a multinational conglomerate with holdings across various industries, including venture capital, lending, and real estate.
As avid supporters of health care and higher education, Wen’s family has previously given to the University of California, committing $100 million to the system since 2022.
In 2024, the family donated $42.5 million, which helped to launch the Joe C. Wen School of Population and Public Health at UC Irvine, Orange County’s first school of public health.
Wen also donated $7.5 million to UCI for cardiological research, education, and clinical operations. In 2022, he donated $20 million to UCI Health to create an outpatient clinical facility in Irvine.
“The UCLA School of Nursing is ranked among the top 10 nursing programs in the nation, and UCLA Health is consistently ranked among the top hospitals in the nation,” the alum added. “I am inspired by my alma mater, which has shaped our overwhelming belief in educational institutions as change agents for human health.”