Last November, an Arlington man who received as master’s degree from Texas A&M in 1972 made the largest endowed gift ever to the college of medicine. This Saturday, when new Aggie doctors get their white coat, the university will officially name the college for Naresh Vashisht. This follows the board of regents approving the name change associated with the gift of an undisclosed amount. Vashisht (VUH-SHEEST) is the founder of a 38 year old company that produces chemical fertilizers. An A&M news release says the gift will fund scholarships, medical research and innovation, and support for rural health care across Texas.”
Unmanned helicopters are coming to the RELLIS campus. The Texas A&M system says that’s after the state legislature during the regular session gave $60 million dollars to buy up to four Blackhawk helicopters and equip them to fly without pilots as a way to combat wildfires. A system news release does not say when the new aircraft will arrive at the Bush Combat Development Complex on the RELLIS campus.
Texas A&M statement about the naming of the college of medicine for Naresh Vashisht:
Texas A&M University’s college of medicine will celebrate a milestone moment with its annual White Coat Ceremony and the official unveiling of its new name: the Texas A&M University Naresh K. Vashisht College of Medicine. This event marks the start of a new chapter rooted in tradition, service and transformational generosity.
The renaming honors a historic gift from Naresh K. Vashisht ‘72 that will fund scholarships, medical research and innovation, and support for rural health care across Texas.
The white coat ceremony is a time-honored tradition in medical education during which incoming students are formally welcomed into the profession by receiving and donning their first white coat—a powerful symbol of their entry into clinical training and commitment to compassionate, ethical care. The celebration will include inspiring remarks, symbolic presentations, emotional moments as students take their first steps toward becoming physicians, and a post-ceremony reception.
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 ’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.”
Texas A&M system news release about unmanned helicopters coming to the RELLIS campus:
The Texas Legislature recently appropriated $59.8 million for the Texas A&M University System’s George H.W. Bush Combat Development Complex to develop a way to use pilotless Blackhawk helicopters to combat wildfires.
The project is intended to revolutionize how Texas responds to the wildfires that ravage the state every year. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency, or DARPA, selected the Texas A&M System to collaborate on the agency’s Aircrew Labor In-cockpit Automation System, better known as ALIAS.
“The Texas A&M System always steps up,” Robert Albritton, chairman of the Texas A&M System’s Board of Regents, said. “We have the know-how. We have the drive. And we are ready to do our part for the state.”
Chancellor Glenn Hegar agreed.
“We see it every year. Texas gets more than its share of disasters, and we at the Texas A&M System promise to continue our work to leverage the latest technologies and innovative ideas to make our great state as safe as possible,” Hegar said. “I also need to mention that this project would not be possible without the hard work of our top state officials, in particular Chairman Greg Bonnen. We appreciate their dedication to the well-being of Texans.”
In addition to the Bush Combat Development Complex, or BCDC, key contributors include Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi’s Autonomy Research Institute, the Texas Division of Emergency Management, the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service, the Texas A&M Forest Service and the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station.
“The Texas A&M System is ready to lead this initiative due to our extensive technical and firefighting expertise across multiple universities and state agencies,” Hegar said. “This is the latest example of how the Texas A&M System provides valuable services to the state.”
BCDC Director Maj. Gen. (Ret.) Tim Green said he is excited for the System to have an opportunity to build upon critical advancements in autonomous helicopter development.
“I am proud we are working with DARPA in a manner that will benefit Texas, the Department of Defense, and commercial industry,” Green said. “Wildland firefighting will be the first mission application fully developed to take advantage of over a decade of work by DARPA on its Aircrew Labor In-cockpit Automation System (ALIAS).”
DARPA’s ALIAS program, launched in 2013, has successfully demonstrated fully autonomous flight capabilities on approximately 20 aircraft platforms. The automation toolkit, known as MATRIX, was developed by Sikorsky and will be a cornerstone of the Texas initiative, alongside DARPA and Sikorsky as key partners.
The funding will support the acquisition and autonomous configuration of up to four UH-60 Blackhawk helicopters, as well as the development of facilities, tools, and equipment necessary for research, testing, and integration of firefighting capabilities over the next two years.
“Partnering on a testbed at the state level provides an unparalleled opportunity to rapidly field new technology and ensure outsized impact to Americans both in and out of uniform,” said DARPA Director Stephen Winchell. “The solutions achieved through collaboration with the Bush Combat Development Complex support both economic and national security while demonstrating complex fully autonomous capabilities in challenging real-world conditions.”
The goal of the ALIAS program is to enable high-risk missions—such as firefighting and combat operations—while reducing the risk to pilots and aircraft, minimizing operational costs and wear on aircraft, and maximizing flight availability. BCDC’s testing of ALIAS-equipped aircraft will include aircraft working in fully automated (no pilots) and semi-automated (only one pilot, using AI as their “co-pilot”) as they conduct highly complex firefighting tasks using one or more ALIAS equipped aircraft working concurrently.
“Advancing system capabilities through the last stages of technology maturation, operational testing, and concept development is always hugely exciting and rewarding,” said John Diem, Director of the Innovation Proving Grounds at BCDC, who will serve as Principal Investigator for the ALIAS project. “The best part of my career has been seeing systems I tested move into the hands of warfighters. Now, I’m proud to help ensure ALIAS is safe and effective in protecting life and property – and we will do that through realistic and challenging testing.”
Located on the 3,300-acre Texas A&M-RELLIS Campus near Bryan, Texas, BCDC represents a $300 million investment from the State of Texas and TAMUS. Since 2019, BCDC has partnered with Army Futures Command and other defense and academic institutions to accelerate the development of critical national security technologies, including autonomous vehicles and hypersonics.