麻豆app

As a prolific entrepreneur, Rick Marini 鈥�94 knows a good investment when he sees one.听

And for him, few have proven more meaningful than investing in students.听

Even as his business success grew and took him around the world, some of Marini鈥檚 favorite memories have come from returning to the 麻豆app and sharing his experiences with students.听

A familiar face at the Peter T. Paul College of Business and Economics, Marini has seen firsthand how Paul鈥檚 experiential learning programs prepare students to become leaders. That insight 鈥� and a deep personal connection to UNH 鈥� led him to give a $1 million gift in support of the , which houses the , and the 听

The gift was celebrated recently during Reunion Weekend, where Marini鈥檚 family, friends, and former classmates gathered to dedicate the newly named Marini Auditorium inside Paul College. 听

鈥淔or the past decade, Professor Jeff Sohl [Rines鈥� founder] allowed me to be a guest speaker in his class and teach students about venture capital, private equity, and angel investing,鈥� Marini says. 鈥淚 think we all want to make an impact on the world, especially with our friends and our family. And for me, it was also important to make an impact on the school that prepared me for my career.鈥澨�

Marini says he鈥檚 impressed with 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. 听

鈥淚 am blown away at the level of competency of these students,鈥� Marini says. 鈥淚 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, give them a chance to get there.鈥� 听听

听

Paul College Dean Lucy Gilson called Marini鈥檚 gift 鈥渢ransformational鈥� because it supports two programs essential to Paul鈥檚 mission. The Paul Scholars Program allows the college to attract and retain the best and brightest students, while Rines 鈥� the first undergraduate student-run angel investing group in the country 鈥� teaches students how to invest real money in startups as undergrads. 听听

鈥淭hese programs are differentiators for us, especially at a time when the value of higher education is being questioned. They show exactly what we do that makes a difference,鈥� Gilson says. 听

UNH President Elizabeth Chilton expressed appreciation for Marini鈥檚 gift, noting the importance of such generosity. 听

鈥淩ick's story isn't just one of his professional successes; it's a story of giving back. His desire to make a difference and his unwavering support for UNH speaks volumes about the values that he holds dear,鈥� Chilton says. 鈥淭his gift will empower students for generations to come, equipping them with the knowledge, skills, and inspiration they need to thrive in a fast-changing world. Now more than ever, gifts like Rick's are essential to the continued success of our institution.鈥� 听

Marini grew up in Merrimack, New Hampshire, and attended Harvard Business School after graduating from UNH. He resides in California with his wife, Naitry Marini, and two children, Meera and Roshan. 听

He is currently the co-founder and managing partner of Catapult Capital, a private equity firm that acquired digital content platform JibJab in 2019 and dating app Grindr in 2020. Rick led the $620 million acquisition of Grindr, became the chief operating officer and then took the company public in 2022 with a market cap of $2 billion. He says his secret to success at Grindr and his other ventures is humility and focus on creating a positive company culture.听

鈥淓veryone 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,鈥� Marini says. 鈥淗aving 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.鈥� 听

Over his 25-year career, Marini founded multiple startups 鈥� including Tickle, BranchOut, and Protocol Ventures 鈥� and has built a reputation as one of Silicon Valley鈥檚 most active angel investors, with early investments in companies like Snapchat, Reddit, and Opendoor. In 2018, Forbes named him among the Top 50 angel investors based on successful exits and deal volume. He was inducted into the UNH Alumni Entrepreneur Hall of Fame in 2020. 听听

Marini advises students looking to become entrepreneurs to work at a startup for a few years to learn before going out on their own. He also encourages students to take risks. 听

鈥淲hen I first started, I didn't realize I would become an entrepreneur. I didn't realize how important risk-taking would be later,鈥� Marini says. 鈥淚t's something that you build up to. It's not something that you often do right out of college, and I didn't.鈥� 听

Marini also urges students to make the most of their time at UNH 鈥� whether taking on leadership roles, exploring new ideas, or stepping outside their comfort zone. For him, participating in the Washington Center Internship Program as a junior was a turning point that expanded his worldview.听

鈥淕oing to D.C. really opened my eyes to the bigger picture,鈥� he says. 鈥淚 came back to UNH feeling more worldly and knowledgeable.鈥� 听

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

鈥淚'm a 603 guy, and because UNH did prepare me so well for my career, it鈥檚 the place that I look at as the starting point,鈥� Marini says. 鈥淭o come full circle and be able to support that place this many years later, it means a lot to me personally.鈥澨�

听