“I wanted to do something different and give back:” How the Finks are helping Berkeley build a brighter future for economics students

Fink is now assisting his alma mater through the Economics Building Task Force, a group of advisors determining how to build and finance a new home base for the Department of Economics. Evans Hall, which currently houses many economics classrooms and offices, is slated to come down around 2030. Inhabitants rarely expressed warm feelings toward the 12-story monolithic structure, and engineers declared it seismically unsafe in a 2019 risk assessment.

“It always surprised me that they were able to build such a good department in such a horrible environment,” said Fink. “Moving into a whole new space designed for them will really help with student and faculty recruitment, retention, and experiences.”

Fink always wanted to work for a university but realized early on that academia was not for him. He went to England — where he met his wife, Melanie — and Harvard Law School. The couple moved back to the Bay Area, where Michael handled real estate and business transactions and Melanie worked at UC Berkeley’s Engineering Systems Research Center. Then, in 1996, Michael joined an emerging Seattle institution: Starbucks.

“I was interested in being more than just a lawyer,” said Fink. “As an outside lawyer, you get brought in, you work on the deal, then you move on to the next case. I wanted to be more involved in the operations. Some of that came from my economics background and interest in business.”

Fink began working for the growing coffee company when it had 1,000 stores. He helped develop their licensing and franchising model, set up some of their first offices overseas, worked on acquisitions and global market launches, and became general counsel for their international division. With around 38,000 Starbucks stores in 86 countries, Fink was instrumental in the company's growth.

His impact can be felt across the University of Washington as well. By negotiating innovative ground leases (where long-term tenants have the right to add improvements) at university-owned properties, Fink secured funding for new student dormitories. Fink helped build low-income housing projects around Seattle and 1,000 beds at the university’s Bothell campus.

“I wanted to do something different and give back,” Fink said about his career pivot to higher education. “Something in the public interest, not just to make money.”

Michael and Melanie Fink are now giving back to UC Berkeley’s Department of Economics through their estate. The Finks designed their $1 million estate gift to be an endowment used at the department chair’s discretion. Since the endowment will exist permanently, they prioritized flexibility in managing the resources.

“What's needed today is not necessarily what's needed in 20 years,” said Fink. “I can't begin to guess, and I don't want to try to control things from beyond the grave. I have to trust that whoever is the department chair is smart and looking after the department’s best interests. It could be undergraduate research or faculty recruitment. Those needs will change with new times and new chairs, and they're the best ones to decide.”

Fink still follows Berkeley economists’ careers, checking if new Nobel Prize winners have a connection to campus. Lately, he’s found Emmanuel Saez and Gabriel Zucman’s work on wealth inequality particularly compelling. Fink also attends lectures as a member of the 1903 Society, a community of economics supporters who give at least $1,000 a year to the department.

Current department chair Andrés Rodríguez-Clare said he was deeply touched when he heard about the Finks’ estate gift.

“Their gift will empower a future economics chair to address the challenges of their time head-on,” said Rodríguez-Clare. “Mike and Melanie have always provided the department with the ability to remain a top economics department in the world. Their endowment will ensure we can do so in perpetuity.”

Rodríguez-Clare reiterated Fink’s point that departmental priorities change from year to year as the university looks to meet its most pressing needs. However, top-ranked departments tend to focus on maintaining their ability to attract top scholars.

“Currently, our top priorities are recruitment and retention of top-tier graduate students and faculty,” said Rodríguez-Clare. “We teach more than 1,300 undergraduate students, and these students deserve to have access to the best and brightest faculty and graduate students, who will teach, mentor, and inspire our undergraduate students. As with their predecessors, they will go on to become leading faculty and researchers in universities, global economic institutions, governments, and private industry.”

Fink was happy to support excellence in the Department of Economics for years to come.

“I felt that economics has been a big part of me,” said Fink. “It’s followed me through life as a business lawyer, and I know my gift will make a difference to the department. I have a real fondness for what it’s done for me throughout my life. The skills I've learned, the way of thinking — it was a life-changing experience.”