Alumnus makes ‘truly transformational’ $20 million gift to UNMC College of Pharmacy

Joe Williams’ first gift to the University of Nebraska was $10 in 1958. He was eight years out of school.

His final gift was $20 million to the UNMC College of Pharmacy.

Williams, who had an enormous impact on UNMC and its pharmacy college, died March 20, 2021, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery with military honors.

His estate gift allows the College of Pharmacy to endow its deanship; to endow a student scholarship fund and funds for faculty support which include available matching dollars to spur even more giving from the college’s supporters; it includes funds to further develop the UNMC Center for Drug Discovery; and provides unrestricted dollars which the college will use to bring its strategic initiatives to life.

“It allows the college to truly change its trajectory,” said UNMC College of Pharmacy Dean Keith Olsen, PharmD.

Williams was one of the College of Pharmacy’s greatest success stories. And, with his wife, Millie, one of its most steadfast supporters.

He worked in his grandfather’s Pawnee City, Nebraska, pharmacy as a kid, served in the Navy in World War II and graduated from Nebraska with a pharmacy degree. He started as a traveling salesperson and worked his way up to president of pharmaceutical giants Parke-Davis and Warner-Lambert.

Williams was a mover and shaker who shook hands with presidents, but always strove to give back. He chaired the United Negro College Fund and was a driving force behind the establishment of Liberty Science Center museum in New Jersey, Warner-Lambert’s corporate home.

It all started with $10 in 1958.

“That is somebody who is grateful for their education and is willing to give back a little piece, even when they don’t have a lot to give,” Dr. Olsen said.

“I think that speaks to Joe’s overall giving spirit.”

Pharmacy students will begin receiving Williams Scholarships next fall, in amounts ranging from $2,500 to $10,000. The tuition aid will allow students to lessen debt and allow UNMC to compete for some of the nation’s top students.

“We want to give at least some dollars to just about every student that applies,” Dr. Olsen said.

With the gift, $5 million establishes the first-ever endowed deanship at UNMC. The Joseph D. Williams Endowed Deanship Fund will be especially useful to UNMC and its College of Pharmacy in retaining and recruiting future college leaders.

“When we recruit future leaders and share that they will be recognized with a named endowed position, they know that our academic medical center is serious about leading the world to create a healthier future, as our mission says,” said UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD. “This named and endowed deanship is a clear statement that we have the community, and leaders like Joe Williams, behind us.”

The matching dollars from Williams’ gift will help other donors extend their giving potential: “If someone says we want to start a scholarship for $100,000, we can double that and make it $200,000. Or if they say we want to fund a professorship, we can double that and possibly make it an endowed chair,” Dr. Olsen said.

Williams’ gift will enable the Center for Drug Discovery to facilitate pilot grants, equipment purchases, and core services that allow investigators to pursue other grants and potentially take their work one step closer to clinical trials. Matching funds apply here, too.

And unrestricted funds will help the college take strategic initiatives from wish list to reality.

“I can’t reiterate enough, and I said this to Millie Williams when I talked to her a few weeks ago: This gift is truly transformational to the college,” Dr. Olsen said.

The gift from Williams also provides support to Only in Nebraska: A Campaign for Our University’s Future, the university’s current fundraising effort publicly announced on Nov. 18 to encourage at least 150,000 benefactors to give $3 billion to support University of Nebraska students, faculty, academic programs and research to address the needs of the state.

A transformational gift

Joe Williams’ $20 million gift to the UNMC College of Pharmacy includes:

• $7.5 million to establish the Joseph D. and Millie E. Williams Pharmacy Endowment Fund, which will be invested permanently and provide more than $300,000 annually in distributions that can be strategically invested in the College of Pharmacy with initial plans to use the funds to augment scholarships for College of Pharmacy students;
• $5 million to establish the Joseph D. and Millie E. Williams Endowment Matching Fund, which will be used to match gift commitments from future donors establishing new endowments that support students, faculty and programs in the College of Pharmacy, allowing the college to leverage the Williams investment to inspire future support;
• $5 million to establish the Joseph D. Williams Endowed Deanship Fund — the first-ever endowed deanship fund for UNMC — that will be invested permanently and provide the College of Pharmacy dean with more than $200,000 in annual distributions to strategically invest at his or her discretion;
• $2.5 million to help with expenses for the construction and ongoing maintenance of the $35 million Center for Drug Discovery and Lozier Center for Pharmacy Sciences and Education that opened in 2016 as the new home of the UNMC College of Pharmacy.

About Joe Williams

Joseph “Joe” D. Williams served in the Navy during WWII before attending the University of Nebraska, where he was a member of the Phi Delta Theta fraternity and graduated from the College of Pharmacy in 1950. He became a transformational figure in the pharmaceutical industry. As chair and CEO of Warner-Lambert, his innovative leadership helped increase annual revenue by $3 billion. More importantly, he helped drive and deliver new drug therapies and products from the laboratory to the marketplace. His counsel and expertise were sought as a director on scores of corporate, charitable and educational boards, and he was awarded honorary degrees by more than a dozen colleges and universities, including an honorary Doctor of Pharmacy and honorary Doctor of Science from UNMC. The American Pharmacists Association Foundation Library is named in his honor as is the Joseph D. and Millie E. Williams Science Hall on UNMC’s Omaha campus. Williams was awarded the pharmacy profession’s highest honor, the Remington Honor Medal, which is on display at the UNMC College of Pharmacy.

What they are saying

“Dr. Williams’ life is a great American story and a true ‘Only in Nebraska’ story. We are eternally grateful to Joe and Millie for their friendship and their incredible support over the years. For all his success, Joe never forgot where it all began. A great example of the power of a health professional degree. I am excited to see what further great American stories our College of Pharmacy will be able to write in the years to come, thanks to the enduring investment in the future made by Joe and his family.” – UNMC Chancellor Jeffrey P. Gold, MD

“Joe Williams was one of the University of Nebraska’s most successful and accomplished graduates. He and Millie have also been among our most ardent supporters and advocates. Joe and Millie provided volunteer leadership and generous support during their lifetime, and we are most grateful for Joe’s plans to support his beloved College of Pharmacy with this amazing gift through his estate. We look forward to honoring his memory and generosity in the years to come.” – University of Nebraska Foundation President and CEO Brian F. Hastings