Alice Walton, the billionaire Walmart heiress and philanthropist, has opened a new medical school in Bentonville, Arkansas, that aims to transform how future doctors are trained. The Alice L. Walton School of Medicine, known as AWSOM, officially welcomed its first class of 48 students on July 14, 2025. The school, located near Walton’s Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art, represents a sweeping reimagining of medical education with a focus on holistic, preventive care and whole-person healing.
The campus spans 154,000 square feet and features healing gardens, rooftop parks, wellness and meditation rooms, a fitness center, yoga studios, and immersive art displays. The building is designed to blend seamlessly with the surrounding landscape, incorporating native stone and sustainable design elements. This is more than architectural flourish—it’s central to Walton’s vision of integrating art, nature, and medicine into a cohesive model of health and well-being.
Walton, who experienced a life-altering car accident in the 1980s, has spoken openly about how her own recovery journey made her question the limitations of conventional medicine. With the opening of AWSOM, she hopes to train physicians who look beyond diagnosis and treatment to consider emotional, spiritual, nutritional, and lifestyle factors that influence health outcomes. The curriculum reflects this ambition, combining traditional biomedical instruction with studies in mental and emotional health, nutrition, self-care, health coaching, and community medicine.
Dr. Sharmila Makhija, the founding dean and CEO of the school, has called AWSOM a disruptive model in medical education. Under her leadership, the school is pursuing full accreditation to award M.D. degrees and has already partnered with regional health systems including Mercy Hospital and a planned health campus connected to the Cleveland Clinic. Students will rotate through clinical placements that include underserved areas in Arkansas and the broader region.
To reduce barriers and attract top candidates, the school is covering full tuition for its first five entering classes. The inaugural cohort was selected from over 2,200 applicants, with an admission rate of less than three percent. Construction is also underway on a new residential complex across from the school that will house up to 300 students, residents, and fellows. That complex will include walking trails, communal kitchens, study spaces, and design elements echoing the school’s emphasis on wellness and environmental harmony.
Alice Walton has said that while AWSOM is deeply rooted in her home state of Arkansas, the project’s reach is national in scope. If the model proves successful, she hopes other medical schools will adopt similar whole-health philosophies and reshape how doctors are trained across the United States. The opening of the school marks the latest milestone in Walton’s expansive philanthropic work, which already includes Crystal Bridges, the Momentary arts venue, and the Whole Health Institute—all located in Bentonville.
With the launch of AWSOM, Walton has created an institution that combines art, nature, science, and community in service of a single idea: that medical care should be as comprehensive, compassionate, and human-centered as the lives it seeks to protect.
