Dewaine V. and Jana B. Robinson’s Ferris State University Legacy

A 1955 Ferris State College Pharmacy honors graduate, Dewaine V. Robinson, operated and sold Flint-based Professional Pharmacy, Fenton-Hill Drugs and Bristol Road Drugs. He also founded a computerized billing company.

Jana studied accounting at Flint Junior College and worked in the registrar’s office and Crestwood Memorial Gardens in Grand Blanc before marrying Dewaine in 1961. She worked alongside Dewaine in his businesses, handling the books.

The Dewaine V. and Jana B. Robinson Scholarship Endowment—established in 2018 through the Robinson’s estate—has impacted the lives of 170 Ferris State University College of Pharmacy students in its first five years. The Robinson’s legacy has already provided more than $600,000 in scholarship support.

Because it’s an endowment, this is just the beginning—it will continue to support our College of Pharmacy students for generations.

One of those students is Bayleigh Kamm, Pharm D Candidate, Class of 2027, who is grateful for the support of alumni, like the Robinsons.

“As a student from the lower-middle class, as well as the first to enter the medical field from my family, the impact of the Dewaine V. and Jana B. Robinson Endowed Scholarship is enormous. I am funding my education on my own, so receiving the Robinson Scholarship means I could take out fewer student loans, saving me hundreds or thousands of dollars in interest in the future.

It is a big gift to students to have a little stress and weight taken off their shoulders while they strive to reach their dreams. That is probably the most impactful thing to someone—to see their dreams coming true. Thanks to scholarships like the Dewaine V. and Jana B. Robinson Estate, I am able to watch mine bear fruit.”