Investing in students, back where it all began

As a prolific entrepreneur, Rick Marini ’94 knows a good investment when he sees one. And for him, few have proven more meaningful than investing in students.

Even as his business success grew and took him around the world, some of Marini’s favorite memories have come from returning to the University of New Hampshire and sharing his experiences with students.

A familiar face at the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics, Marini has seen first-hand how Paul’s experiential learning programs prepare students to become leaders. That insight — and a deep personal connection to UNH — led him to give a $1 million gift in support of the Center for Venture Research (home of the Rines Angel Fund) and the Paul Scholars Program.

Marini says he is “blown away” by the caliber of students at Paul, noting they know much more about venture capital, private equity and angel investing than he did at their age.

“I hope my gift has an impact on those students to allow them to continue to elevate well above where I was, as well as give students who are stretching to become important business leaders in the future a chance to get there.”

His gift is transformational, says Paul College Dean Lucy Gilson, because it supports two programs essential to Paul’s mission. The Paul Scholars Program allows the college to attract and retain the best and brightest students, while Rines — the first undergraduate student-run angel investing group in the country — teaches students how to invest real money in startups as undergrads.

Marini has some advice for students looking to become entrepreneurs: work at a startup for a few years to learn before going out on their own, take risks — “I didn’t realize how important risk-taking would be later” — and explore new ideas and experiences.

For him, participating in the Washington Center Internship Program as a junior was a turning point that expanded his worldview.

“Going to D.C. really opened my eyes to the bigger picture. I came back to UNH feeling more worldly and knowledgeable.”

Years later, he hopes his gift will spark those same kinds of breakthroughs for others.

“I’m a 603 guy, and because UNH did prepare me so well for my career, it’s the place that I look at as the starting point,” Marini says. “To come full circle and be able to support that place this many years later, it means a lot to me personally.”

He says his secret to success at Grindr and his other ventures is humility and a focus on creating a positive company culture.

“Everyone who’s ever worked for me in any of my startups has had equity. When we took Grindr public, every single person on the New York Stock Exchange floor that was there for Grindr made money that day,” Marini says. “Having aligned incentives, having a culture of transparency and a culture that rewards performance and helping people perform, when you bring all of those together, you not only have success today in your company, but many of those people have continued to work with me for decades.”