Grace Can Dress You for Success
By Kelly Saavedra
As director of University Stores at Carnegie Mellon, Grace coaches a talented team that is supplying people’s needs, contributing to the CMU experience, and promoting the CMU brand.
“I love the variety in my job — marketing, sales, finance, statistics, human resources,” Grace said. “No day is like the previous day. And there is always something new to explore and consider — new products and services, new ways of delivering or sourcing, new ways to interact with our community.”
One particularly extraordinary day for Grace will be Friday, Oct. 26, when Farnam Jahanian is formally installed as Carnegie Mellon’s 10th president. For her first time at Carnegie Mellon — third time in her 35-year career of collegiate retailing — Grace helped design the regalia that the president will wear for his inauguration. Jahanian’s ensemble combines gray tropical wool with scarlet velvet accents topped by a 6-sided tam with silver tassel.
“It is an honor to do it, and it is rewarding to see the president in the regalia you helped to design,” she said.
During the actual hustle and bustle of inauguration day, Grace will be behind the scenes distributing regalia to faculty and staff and helping people with their caps and gowns.
“It is extremely difficult to put on your own hood. You really need someone to help. So, I’ll be mostly helping people with their hoods,” she said.
Grace earned a bachelor’s degree from Elizabethtown College and an MBA from Philadelphia University. She is a past president of the National Association of College Stores (NACS), and a recipient of the NACS Order of the Eagle Award for contributions to the industry. There have been a total of 16 recipients since its inception in 1991. She also is one of 13 recipients of the Aspen Award, an annual honor given to recognize dedication to industry education and mentoring.
Outside of work, Grace enjoys spending time with family. Since her family doesn’t live in Pittsburgh, visiting them involves travel, which she also loves along with food, wine and a good book. When it’s time to get back to work, she is proud to return to a place where “great people are doing creative and exciting things in service to our community.”
“Carnegie Mellon is a vibrant university with creative and curious students, world-class faculty, and a dedicated staff,” she said. “Who wouldn’t want to be part of that?”