The knock on the door was unexpected.

While in college, Michael Yonker had a girlfriend who was in contention for a position at a national laboratory. As part of her background check process, Yonker was going to be interviewed, although he was reluctant.

"I was very idealistic, and I did not want to participate in a process that perpetuates countries keeping scientific secrets from each other," Michael explained. "But at the same time, I did not want to decline an interview and hinder Karen's chance at getting a very good job."

Still undecided, Yonker recalls a knock on his dorm room door at about 8 a.m. one day. It was an FBI agent.

"I spoke with him for about a half an hour, and we just discussed my reasons for not wanting to be interviewed for about 25 minutes of the interview," said Yonker. "He was very nice, and we had a good conversation. He subsequently told Karen that if I was serious about wanting to change the world in the ways we had discussed, I should go to law school and become a public interest lawyer. I did not think about doing much else after that."

Yonker is a part-time adjunct faculty in the Department of Criminology. He has also taught in the Department of Finance and Business Law in the Craig School of Business.

Yonker started teaching at Fresno State in fall 2016. Prior to that, he practiced law in New York City for about 17 years. While the big city was good for a long time — Yonker is a local.

"I grew up in Fresno, graduating from Bullard High School in 1989," he said.

At Fresno State, Yonker knows he can impact lives. He also teaches at Reedley College.

"Education is really a universal good,” Yonker said. “I am not just helping students learn material, but I am also helping them build their education, their careers and their lives."

Yonker attended the University of California, Davis and graduated in 1994 with a double major in chemistry and political science and a minor in German. Following that, he served for a year as an AmeriCorps/VISTA Volunteer in Centerville, Iowa.

Then, he went to law school at New York University. After graduating in 1998, he stayed in New York and practiced real estate and general commercial litigation. He owned his own law practice for about the last six years of his time in New York.

When not teaching, Yonker likes watching the Sacramento Kings play basketball.

(Editor's note: Campus News accepts nominations for faculty and staff profiles. These stories allow the campus community to learn about the many colleagues who contribute to the success of Fresno State. If you know someone with an interesting story — a passion for helping the community or a cause, a remarkable life journey, or there is just something fascinating about them to share — please email campusnews@csufresno.edu.)