Fresno State University has announced a $5 million bequest to establish and endow scholarships in perpetuity.

The gift, which represents the entire estate of alumnus John W. Long, will establish three endowed funds to provide scholarships covering the full cost of tuition for more than twenty Fresno State students annually. The scholarships will be named for Long's mother, Miriam Long, who earned her teaching credential from the university in 1919, when it was known as Fresno State Normal School. Miriam Long spent her career teaching elementary school in West Fresno and helped support her son as he attended Fresno State, where he studied business. The first class of Miriam Long Scholars will be named in advance of the 2014-15 academic year.

As early as the 1970s, John Long had decided to leave his estate to Fresno State. Over the next forty years, he worked in retail, selling men's clothes in Los Angeles and steadily building his worth through investments and real estate. A bachelor, he passed away in January.

"The impact of his gift to Fresno State is staggering," said the university's director of planned giving, Steve Spriggs. "Thousands of lives will be changed, but he wanted no acknowledgement for his generosity. When I asked Mr. Long if he understood how significant these scholarships will be for so many students, he simply said, 'I just wanted to help.'"