Meet the Staff
Meredith Meyer Grelli
Director of Project Olympus
Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship & Entrepreneur in Residence, Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship
Meredith is the Director of Project Olympus, a part of the Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship. She is the Assistant Dean of Entrepreneurship Initiatives at Carnegie Mellon University. She is also an Assistant Professor of Entrepreneurship at the Tepper School of Business and is an Entrepreneur in Residence at Carnegie Mellon University's Swartz Center for Entrepreneurship. She was awarded the 2023 Gerald Leland Bach Teaching Award, voted by MBA students. She founded and leads the Family Business Initiative at Carnegie Mellon, which brings together family business owners and entrepreneurs from an array of industries and geographies.
Meredith Meyer Grelli founded, led, and sold two craft beverage companies, Wigle Whiskey and Threadbare Cider & Mead. Wigle Whiskey was Pennsylvania’s first direct to consumer spirits company since Prohibition. She is a two time James Beard Semi-Finalist for Outstanding Wine, Spirits, Beer Professional and was named 100 Women to Watch in the US by the Business Times. Meredith’s work helped to restore Pennsylvania’s legacy as the Birthplace of American Whiskey, as well as change the regulatory framework in which distilleries operate.
She has also founded, led and transitioned three non-profit organizations. In addition to her innovation and entrepreneurship, Meredith is an author, real estate developer, and seed investor with an unsinkable interest in community and economic development. She received her BS from the University of Chicago, studied cuisine at Le Cordon Bleu Paris, and earned her MBA from the Tepper School of Business at Carnegie Mellon University.
Melanie Simko
Senior Program Manager
Melanie is responsible for managing the National Science Foundation I-Corps, Innovation Commercialization Fellows, and Customer Discovery Kickstart programs. Prior to joining Carnegie Mellon University, she was clinical research coordinator at Seton Hill University and also worked in healthcare administration and nonprofit and governmental accounting.
Melanie earned a B.S. in Accounting from Saint Vincent College in Latrobe, PA, a B.S. in Nutrition and Dietetics, summa cum laude, from Seton Hill University in Greensburg, PA and a Master’s Degree in Public Management, with highest distinction, from Carnegie Mellon University’s Heinz College.
Melanie lives in Shadyside with her husband and enjoys experimenting with new recipes, exploring hiking trails, and daydreaming about where to travel next.
Matthew Katsaros
Program Administrator
Matthew is responsible for managing all of the administrative work for Project Olympus. This includes being the first point of contact for all new groups that apply to Olympus, managing the building space at 4620 Henry Street, overseeing the Olympus website and social media outlets, event planning and coordination, maintaining all group details in SalesForce, working with Academic Advisors to connect our startups with students looking for experiences, and all of the other pieces that helps keep Olympus moving forward.
Matthew earned a B.S. in Psychology from the University of Georgia and a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership from St. Mary's University of Minnesota.
Matthew lives in Oakmont with his wife and two children. He enjoys coaching the kids' soccer teams, playing soccer (and other sports!) himself, exploring hiking trails, and cheering on his beloved Georgia Bulldogs.