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Marianna Brown Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences
Carnegie Mellon University

September 2021
Dietrich College News
Dietrich Welcomes New Faculty, Postdocs and Visiting Faculty
Carnegie Mellon University’s Dietrich College of Humanities and Social Sciences welcomes 21 new faculty, postdoctoral fellows and visiting lecturers, who bring their cutting edge research and world class pedagogy to the college.

Local Perceptions Obscure COVID Risk During Pandemic
Super-spreading events have proven to be the primary mode of infection driving the COVID-19 pandemic, which has led to an inaccurate perception of risk. A survey conducted early in the pandemic found that local perceptions of risk often do not correlate with the national infection rate, leading people to take inappropriate actions. The results are available in the August 16 issue of the journal Decision. 

Where Talent Meets Opportunity
Three 2021 Dietrich College graduates have set their path to an exciting future. Krithika Veerappan, a neuroscience major with a concentration in computational neuroscience, has been hired as a consultant at the strategic consulting firm Pariveda Solutions. Matthew Kern, an information sciences major, will join Capital One. Simon Lenoe, a German major with minors in music and Japanese, has joined the Global Language institute.

Make a Wisch
Josh, a 1997 graduate of the Dietrich College for Humanities and Social Sciences and Heinz College of Information Systems and Public Policy, grew up in a small Ohio town that’s big on Pittsburgh sports. A 1999 graduate of the College of Fine Arts, Malia was born and raised 6,000 miles away in Hawaii.

They met during an orientation session in 1996.

Upcoming Remote Alumni Events

  • Online events. A number of online events are planned. Register here. The archive of past webinars is available at any time.


  • Share stories. The university wants to highlight stories of Tartans who are volunteering, working in a critical field or brightening the world during this time. Submit your stories.

Dietrich College in the News
Class Notes
Find out what's new with Dietrich College students and alumni, including Phil Simon (DC 1994), Pavithra Tantrigoda (DC 2011, 2018) and Richard Branscomb (DC 2023), in Class Notes.


Network with other alumni in the Dietrich College Alumni LinkedIn Group.
Personal Mentions
Read about news and accomplishments from the college's faculty and staff, including Marlene Behrmann, in this issue's Personal Mentions

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