Texas A&M University receives historic gift for College of Medicine

Naresh K. Vashisht ’72, an entrepreneur from Arlington, Texas, has made the largest endowed gift ever to Texas A&M University’s College of Medicine. As a result, The Texas A&M University System Board of Regents voted unanimously to name the Texas A&M University Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine during its November meeting.

The gift will further the university’s land-grant mission through supporting the Vashisht College of Medicine’s innovative work. “Texas A&M is a place that tackles the biggest challenges facing our state, our nation and our world head on,” said General (Ret.) Mark A. Welsh III, president of Texas A&M University. “Mr. Vashisht’s generous gift ensures that we can expand upon our land-grant mission by educating outstanding Aggie doctors, discovering new knowledge, and leading the charge in the areas of medical research and health care, all while supporting our rural and underserved communities.”

Vashisht’s career has spanned four decades and two continents. He initially worked with major and independent oil companies in a variety of engineering and management positions before founding and becoming CEO of Omimex Resources Inc. in 1987. His company drilled and operated oil and gas wells in the United States, Canada and Colombia before diversifying into the chemical fertilizer industry in Colombia and seven additional South American countries. Currently, Omimex Resources is building multiple fertilizer plants in Brazil.

Vashisht’s gift through the Texas A&M Foundation is tied to his passion for the role that education can have on individuals, families and society. “My three college degrees enabled my professional success, so I want to provide the same to as many people as I can,” explained the businessman, who holds a bachelor’s degree in petroleum engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (formerly Indian School of Mines), a master’s degree in petroleum engineering from Texas A&M and an MBA in finance from Eastern New Mexico University. “Once one person in a family is educated, the whole family’s quality of life improves.”

He is also focused on making financial commitments that create an immediate impact on health care and underserved populations. Impressed with the College of Medicine’s innovative work, his gift will create full-tuition scholarships for Aggie medical students and a dean’s excellence fund to support the college’s strategic needs, establish an innovation and discovery fund for medical research, and support Texas A&M’s groundbreaking Rural Medicine Program.

The college’s dean said that Vashisht’s support will enhance and expand its work. “We will be able to give more scholarships that will make our college even more attractive to applicants and help us retain students, particularly those from rural or underserved parts of the state who are committed to becoming Aggie doctors,” explained Amy Waer, MD, FACS, MPSA ’23, Jean and Tom McMullin Endowed Dean. “This gift will also help our Rural Medicine Program tremendously and enable us to be even more innovative, particularly around academic student success and research.”

Vashisht previously provided philanthropic support for his high school in India, a Pre-K Center of Excellence in Colombia, the Cook Children’s Medical Center, and the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Tarrant County. He also created two centers at his alma mater in India, one for innovation and another for research in hydrogen and carbon capture technologies. Additionally, he has created numerous scholarships and faculty positions focused on health care.

Strong philanthropic support helps create a critical margin of excellence for the university’s leading-edge academics, programs and research. “Mr. Vashisht’s gift embodies hard work, brilliance and the American Dream,” said Tyson Voelkel ’96, president and CEO of the Texas A&M Foundation. “A true patriot, his endowed gift will save lives, elevate health care outcomes and spark generational change for Texas A&M medical students for years to come.”