The Helen Wills Neuroscience Institute (HWNI) at the University of California, Berkeley was founded in 1999 with assistance from a US$10 million bequeathal left by eight-time Wimbledon champion Helen Wills Moody, an alumna of the University of California - Berkeley.
After the death of Helen Wills Moody in 1998 the University of California, Berkeley approved the foundation of a new neuroscience research institute. In order to honor the contributions to the university by this alumna her name was made eponymous with the institute. In 1999 the institute officially became a part of the University, forming its own graduate school which offers a doctorate in neuroscience. The first student to receive a PhD in Neuroscience from the institute was Thomas Muench, PhD who graduated in 2005. At any time there are approximately 40 graduate students in the department, though there is no undergraduate neuroscience program.
The institute now encompasses over 40 research faculty from many departments including: Molecular & Cellular Biology, Psychology, Integrative Biology, Vision Science, Chemical Engineering, Electrical Engineering & Computer Science, Physics, Environmental Science, Policy & Management and Anthropology. The institute supports 5 general subdivisions within neuroscience: Cellular, Cognitive, Developmental, Molecular, and Systems.