Jay Leno Endows Scholarship in Car-Restoration Studies

The host of"The Tonight Show with Jay Leno” says he wants to make sure he’ll be able to find a car machinist under 60.

So Mr. Leno is endowing a scholarship program at McPherson College for students in its restoration-technology program, in which students are trained to restore antique cars.

Mr. Leno made the announcement recently when he was named “Collector Car Hobby’s Person of the Year.” The award is given annually by the Blackhawk Automobile Museum in Danville, Cal., to a car collector who is chosen by automotive journalists.

Mr. Leno’s gift will create the Fred Duesenberg Memorial Scholarship, named for the designer of a classic automobile.

McPherson is the only four-year college in the country that offers an associate’s-degree program in restoration technology. The program was created 20 years ago with a $1.5-million gift from a Kansas entrepreneur who also gave McPherson his antique car collection, valued at $250,000.

Earnings from the scholarship fund will support one student each year. McPherson will not divulge the amount of Mr. Leno’s gift, and his publicist did not return calls.