Brad McWilliams remembered as champion of innovation, community

Brad McWilliams remembered as champion of innovation, community

Updated: September 19, 2025

Damon Bradley "Brad" McWilliams, a visionary champion of health and dedicated supporter of UTHealth Houston, passed away on Aug. 30 at the age of 83.

Known throughout Houston for his philanthropy, McWilliams dedicated his time and resources to charitable endeavors spanning the arts, nature, animal care, and medicine.

He was particularly interested in medical innovation, having funded several biotechnology and pharmaceutical ventures during a successful business and investing career. He joined the UTHealth Houston Development Board in 2010 and served on several university committees and advisory councils. Together with his wife, Laura, he financially supported priorities including nursing, child development, molecular medicine, and public health, donating more than $2 million between 2010 and 2022.

That same commitment to advancing health science culminated in 2022, when McWilliams made an extraordinary $22 million gift to UTHealth Houston to support biomedical informatics innovation and education. In recognition of this transformational investment, the school was renamed D. Bradley McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics at UTHealth Houston.

"Mr. McWilliams generosity transformed our school and opened tremendous doors of opportunity for our students and faculty," says Jiajie Zhang, PhD, Dean of McWilliams School of Biomedical Informatics and The Glassell Family Foundation Distinguished Chair in Informatics Excellence. "We are honored to carry his name forever in recognition of what he has done for the future of biomedical informatics and what he will always mean to this school."

McWilliams's commitment established endowed faculty appointments, student scholarships, an innovation fund to jump-start promising research, and an endowed research fund to position the school as a leader in leveraging health data science to save and improve lives.

"He built a legacy of giving back and serving others, and we are grateful that he chose to make us part of that," says Kevin J. Foyle, MBA, CFRE, Senior Vice President for Development and Public Affairs. "Mr. McWilliams' giving will continue changing lives for generations to come."