Giving Back

More about the Institute

Since moving to Austin in the 1930s, our family has seen the city grow and change. It’s where we put down roots — starting businesses, raising children and building our community. This is where we wanted to leave our legacy.

In 2016, we made a $20 million gift to Dell Medical School (opens in new tab) at The University of Texas at Austin to create the Mitchel and Shannon Wong Eye Institute (opens in new tab), a leading center to train future ophthalmologists and provide patients with the best medical and surgical eye care possible.

The gift of clear sight changes lives. It allows children to experience the world to its fullest and live prosperous and satisfying lives. It allows adults to regain independence, return to work, care for their families and embrace the environment around them.

The institute will further research into the improvement and preservation of vision. And, in partnership with Dell Medical School, the institute will work to transform health care around better outcomes, improved patient experiences and lower costs for individual patients and the community as a whole.

The launch of the institute is well underway. The school recently hired Jane Edmond, M.D., a national expert and educator in pediatric neuro-ophthalmology and craniofacial disorders, as the institute’s inaugural director and chair of the Department of Ophthalmology. We are excited to see her vision begin to take shape and make a difference in our community.