Carnegie Mellon University Announces First Vice Provost for Entrepreneurship
As Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) continues to enhance its focus on entrepreneurship, the institution has appointed Meredith Meyer Grelli as its first vice provost for entrepreneurship and associate vice president. Grelli’s tenure in these roles begins on July 1, 2026, marking a significant step in CMU’s commitment to fostering innovation.
In her new position, Grelli is tasked with conducting a thorough evaluation of CMU’s entrepreneurship education programs. She will report to both James H. Garrett Jr., the provost and chief academic officer, and Theresa Mayer, the vice president for research. A major component of her role involves collaborating with entities like the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship to design an expansive academic curriculum that provides robust entrepreneurial pathways for students.
Previously, Grelli held several key positions, including managing director and interim executive director of the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship and assistant dean of entrepreneurship initiatives in the School of Computer Science. She has also served as an associate teaching professor at the Tepper School of Business. Grelli will maintain her teaching role and continue as interim executive director of the Swartz Center during the search for a new executive director.
“Meredith has been a driving force for entrepreneurship since joining Carnegie Mellon in 2020,” Garrett stated. “Her leadership has helped expand opportunities for students, strengthen our innovation ecosystem and elevate CMU’s national profile in entrepreneurship. She is exceptionally well positioned to lead this important effort as we continue to build a world-class entrepreneurial education experience for students across the university.”
The establishment of this new vice provost position is part of CMU’s strategy to implement recommendations from the President’s Advisory Board for Enterprise Creation, Entrepreneurship and Industry Engagement. The board emphasized the importance of entrepreneurial education in CMU’s mission and advocated for a cohesive approach to connect the university’s resources and expertise into a unified ecosystem.
“Meredith’s new role will see her augmenting — and partnering with — the Swartz Center and the Colleges to further enhance CMU’s entrepreneurship ecosystem,” Mayer noted. “Accordingly, and as a direct result of the Presidential Advisory Board’s findings, Carnegie Mellon’s talented students and faculty will gain access to more comprehensive, end-to-end offerings that will support them through every step of the startup life cycle.”
Grelli’s impact on CMU’s academic scene is well-established, having received the George Leland Bach Excellence in Teaching Award, and she initiated the Family Business Initiative. This program connects family business leaders across CMU’s global network and integrates industry partners and mentors into her courses on venture formation and commercialization.
As co-chair of the Tepper School’s entrepreneurship curriculum review, she brought together faculty from the Tepper School, School of Computer Science, and the College of Engineering to benchmark against peer institutions and develop a roadmap for cross-college coordination, setting the stage for the integrated curriculum she will now oversee.
Grelli stated, “Students today want to understand not only how to develop groundbreaking ideas, but also how to bring those ideas into the world. I’m excited to work with colleagues across CMU to expand entrepreneurship opportunities through initiatives such as intellectual property education, venture capital co-ops and stronger connections between accelerator programs and degree pathways.”
Under her leadership at the Swartz Center, Grelli has facilitated the growth of CMU Startup Week into the university’s primary entrepreneurship event and launched the Deep Tech Venture-Ready program, connecting founders with venture capital and raising significant funds for startups. Additionally, she initiated the first NSF I-Corps cohort in AI and robotics, building a network of over 4,500 investors to connect CMU founders with capital.
Grelli is a graduate of the University of Chicago with a Bachelor of Science degree and holds an MBA from Carnegie Mellon’s Tepper School of Business.
Read More Here
