The Weill Connection

SANFORD “SANDY” I. WEILL

A NOVEL APPROACH TO CULTIVATING FUTURE MEDICAL STUDENTS

Houston Methodist’s first PhD program got a boost with a generous gift from Joan and Sanford I. Weill and the Weill Family Foundation. His endowment creates the Sanford I. Weill and Antonio M. Gotto Jr., MD Centennial Chair in Translational Biomedical Sciences Education. The chair provides resources for the future leader of Houston Methodist’s PhD programs in partnership with the Weill Cornell Medicine Graduate School of Medical Sciences.

The graduate program in Translational Biomedical Sciences will focus on the heart of Houston Methodist’s mission to generate fundamental insights and trans-late them into transformative therapies, diagnostics and devices. This innovative program, planned to launch with its first cohort of six to eight students some time in 2020, is expected to spark new scientific collaborations between the Houston and New York faculties.

“It is an honor for me and my wife, Joan, to support our colleagues and partners at Houston Methodist in this exciting new educational endeavor with Weill Cornell Medicine,” says Mr. Weill. “The relationship between our two great institutions has been mutually beneficial since we joined forces. Now I look forward to the advances in medical science this program will make possible.”

“I was so excited when I heard about Sandy Weill’s gift,” says Dr. John Cooke, chair of the Department of Cardiovascular Sciences at Houston Methodist who helped design the program and serves as its course director. “Funding will support the chair holder’s time in overseeing the program and its curriculum, and in making it high quality.”

Dr. Cooke says he expects Houston Methodist will attract top-notch students to work toward earning a Weill Cornell Medicine PhD at Houston Methodist because of its unique translational expertise. “Smart young people are the lifeblood of our science, our collaborations and our projects,” he says. “They get things done. We have the translational spirit, facilities and resources to take our students’ ideas and turn them into useful products that can improve patient care.”

DR. ANTONIO GOTTO; SANFORD I. WEILL; DR. AUGUSTINE CHOI, CURRENT DEAN OF WEILL CORNELL; AND DR. MARY CHOI

The chair is a tribute to Houston Methodist’s longstanding relation-ship with Mr. Weill, who helped turn the hospital into the aca-demic medical center it is today. He forged the 2004 partnership between Houston Methodist and Weill Cornell along with John Bookout, who was the Houston Methodist Board chair during this time. After learning Houston Methodist wanted to affiliate with one of the nation’s highest-caliber medical schools, Dr. Antonio B. Gotto — the longtime Houston Methodist physician and chair of the Department of Medicine who became dean and provost of Weill Cornell Medical College in 1996 — suggested the partnership.

Having Mr. Weill’s and Dr. Gotto’s names on the chair that Mr. Weill endowed makes the gift especially meaningful to Dr. Cooke. “Sandy Weill's continued interest in what we’re doing here at Houston Methodist is heartwarming and encouraging,” he says. “Now we only want to achieve the best possible program with his approval going forward.