Faculty generosity allows Haas to stay competitive
It’s the 10th anniversary of the Defining Leadership Principles: Question the Status Quo, Confidence Without Attitude, Students Always, and Beyond Yourself—a culture fully infused into Berkeley Haas. To celebrate, we’re highlighting a few of the faculty who go beyond themselves by waiving their salaries so Haas can spend resources elsewhere—simply because they care deeply for Haas.
Lecturer Ted Janus, MBA 94, principal at J Capital, co-teaches Investment Strategies and Styles for MBA students. For him, teaching at Haas serves a greater purpose. “By helping talented students, I’m contributing both to Berkeley and to the wider world,” he says, which is why Janus continues mentoring his students even after the class concludes.
Jennifer Richard, MBA 19, a principal at Vitalize Venture Group, praises Janus’ care for students. “He really got to know each one of us and what our goals were,” she says. “To this day, when he sees an article that might be relevant to what I’m doing, he’ll reach out to me directly.”
Like Janus, Lecturer Stephen Etter, BS 83, MBA 89, a founding partner of Greyrock Capital Group, says his years as a Berkeley student left an indelible mark. “Cal provided me with the opportunity to get a quality education at a public education price,” Etter says. “I teach in the hope of providing my students that same opportunity.” His undergraduate course on corporate finance helps students convert theory into applications they’ll use in their careers.
Sometimes, faculty step in to ensure students get the skills they’re eager to learn when they want to learn them. When Assoc. Prof. Yuichiro Kamada’s Pricing course was not offered due to paternity leave, dozens of students pulled together an independent study project on the topic. Given the students’ fervent interest, Professional Faculty Member Bill Pearce and Kamada presented materials on pricing to help shape student projects.
Haas administrators are also paying it forward. When Prof. Laura Tyson became interim dean in 2018, she too lived the Beyond Yourself principle. “I decided to decline a dean’s salary so Berkeley Haas would have more funding for other uses,” says Tyson. “As a former Haas dean and long-standing faculty member, I well understand the funding challenges Haas faces.”
In fact, tuition only accounts for half of Haas’ annual revenues. The school depends on and benefits from the generosity of people, like Janus, Etter, Pearce, Kamada, and Tyson, who believe in the transformative power of a Haas education. Beyond Yourself indeed.