Alumnus Joe C. Wen ’98 immigrated to the United States as a teenager with his family from Taiwan. Here, he worked to help his family and pay his tuition while he earned a bachelor’s degree in economics at UCLA and then a master’s degree in business administration from the University of Southern California.
In 2003, he launched his first business — a paper trading company — and that business evolved into Formosa Ltd., a multinational conglomerate with holdings across several industries, including venture capital; lending; real estate holding, development and management; and forest products manufacturing and trading.
Last year, Wen and his family made a $30 million commitment to the UCLA School of Nursing that will advance the school’s excellence and impact by supporting nursing education, elevating student achievement and driving innovation in research.
In recognition of the generous donation, the largest in the nursing school’s 76-year history, the school has been renamed the UCLA Joe C. Wen School of Nursing. It’s the first UCLA school named for an Asian American.
According to Wen, it was his parents, Mary and Steve, who taught him the importance of giving back to community.
“My family joins me in this commitment to support the UCLA School of Nursing’s mission to strengthen excellence in education and the health care system,” Wen said. “This transformational gift will help create a global academic research powerhouse and think tank for future nursing leaders, and I am honored to support this great cause.
"Most importantly, the 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."
The commitment, said UCLA Chancellor Julio Frenk, a globally renowned scholar and champion of public health, represents both an acknowledgment of the importance of nurses — the largest segment of the health care workforce — and a farsighted vision of nursing’s future.
“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,” Frenk said. “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.”
Founded in 1949, the UCLA School of Nursing is a robust research enterprise and one of the nation’s premier centers for leading-edge education, with degree programs ranked among the top 10 by U.S. News & World Report.
Wen’s philanthropy will ensure UCLA’s role in meeting the health care needs of California and the nation by supporting the school’s four educational programs, serving approximately 600 students. Degree programs range from baccalaureate, for students seeking entry-level professional nursing roles, to doctoral, for those pursuing work in advanced nursing practice and research.
Community engagement is integral to the school’s mission to improve health, wellness, quality of life and nursing care for people locally and around the world.
Nursing students and faculty regularly serve throughout Los Angeles, providing free health care to unhoused and underserved populations through initiatives like UCLA Health’s Homeless Healthcare Collaborative and service at the nonprofit Care Harbor. Internationally, the school maintains cooperative academic and research programs with institutions across Asia, Africa and Europe.
“I am profoundly grateful to Joe and his family for understanding the value of nursing with this incredible gift,” said Lin Zhan, PhD, RN, dean of the nursing school. “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.”
In October, more than 40 nursing administrators, faculty, staff and students attended a retreat, Elevating Nursing to a Higher Level of Excellence: Strategic Priorities. They were tasked with discussing the best utilization of this funding.
The group met to prioritize the school’s existing strategic goals, including deepening community engagement; leading research and science; innovating sustainable educational programs; maintaining and generating resources to support scholarship, research and teaching; and building a culture of inclusive excellence.
The UCLA Joe C. Wen School of Nursing will continue its collaborative partnership with UCLA Health, which employs nearly 6,000 nurses across California and plays a key role in developing qualified nurses who are knowledgeable in evidence-based, technology-enabled, patient-centered care.
“I am grateful to Joe and his family for their support of nursing excellence at UCLA. Their philanthropy holds special importance for me as I began my own career in health care as a critical care and trauma nurse,” said Johnese Spisso, MPA, president of UCLA Health, CEO of the UCLA Hospital System and associate vice chancellor of UCLA Health Sciences, at an October event to celebrate the gift announcement.
“The generosity of Joe and his family have positioned us for success and will propel us forward.”
Wen and his family, who live in Orange County, have made several major philanthropic contributions to the University of California. Avid supporters of UC’s health system, their giving includes a 2024 commitment that led to the creation and naming of the UC Irvine Joe C. Wen School of Population & Public Health.
With the latest commitment to the UCLA School of Nursing, the family has committed $100 million to the UC system since 2022.
“UCLA is the nation’s No. 1 public university, 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,” Wen said. “I am inspired by my alma mater, which has shaped our overwhelming belief in educational institutions as change agents for human health.”
This story is adapted from an article that appeared on UCLA Newsroom.
