When some people turn 50 years old, they buy themselves a Corvette. Not John Corvino. Instead, for Corvino’s milestone birthday, he decided on a present that would benefit someone other than himself.

“I was talking with my husband, Mark, about what we could do for my birthday. He said, ‘Well, you are turning 50,’ and we decided to create an endowed fund with a gift of $50,000,” said Corvino, dean of Wayne State’s Irvin D. Reid Honors College, whose birthday is on May 16. “I wanted to do something for my birthday that was more enduring — and an endowed scholarship for our students seemed the way to go.”

The Dean John Corvino Endowed Scholarship will go toward educational expenses for an Honors College student in their junior and senior years, “to help them achieve a strong finish without having to worry as much about finances,” Corvino said. “We're giving $25,000 this year and the rest over the next three to four years.”

Corvino has been at Wayne State for 21 years, starting as a “temporary” lecturer in the Department of Philosophy. He said the university has become an academic home for him, which is what makes this gift all the more special and important.

“I'm very grateful to the university. This was a way for me to pay it forward, by investing in our outstanding students,” Corvino said. “Plus, when friends of mine ask, ‘What should we give John for his birthday?’ we now encourage them to simply add to the scholarship endowment.”

If you'd like to contribute to the Dean John Corvino Endowed Scholarship, visit go.wayne.edu/give-corvino.