November 17, 2014

Since 2006, John and Marie Pino, owners of the Pino Insurance Agency, have honored John’s father with a scholarship in his name at the Oakland University School of Education and Human Services, and now Oakland University (OU) is honoring the Pinos and several other donors at its Leadership Celebration.

The Pinos are among the school’s longtime supporters who will be recognized at the dinner’s 10^th annual  event Nov. 19, sponsored by Meemic Insurance Company and the Pino Insurance Agency.

The dinner will also recognize Erika Sorensen, the winner of both the Lewis N. Pino Memorial Scholarship in Science Education and the Meemic Insurance Company Scholarship for Teacher Education.
 

John Pino grew up around the campus of OU, where his father was an organic chemistry professor, among other positions, from 1966-86. He says he saw the “kick-ass school” grow from about 1,500 students when his father started there to more than 20,000 now.

Pino was a guest at the first Leadership Celebration and has been more and more involved since, joining the school’s Resource Development Board and serving as its chairman.

“We just kept growing in terms of what we do,” he says.

He also volunteers for several other events at the school, including the Autism Run. John and Marie were named honorary alumni in 2010.
 

“They reignited my passion for an excellent school,” he says. “Their teacher prep is probably the best in the state. It’s just phenomenal.”

Pino says he looks forward to meeting Sorensen at the Leadership Celebration.

“We’ve never seen (the winners) prior to the event,” he says. “So it’s a blast to meet them and meet the families.”

The Pino Insurance Agency was founded in 2000 and, in addition to John and Marie, includes their daughters Michele and Jenifer. The family is heavily involved with area schools, and John has presented several Meemic Foundation grant checks to local educators.
Top photo: Joseph Case, the 2013 Lewis N. Pino Award in Science Education winner; Marie Pino; John Pino; C. Robert Maxfield, interim dean for the Oakland University School of Education and Human Services; and Nancy Brown, associate dean for SEHS.