Dena Haritos Tsamitis' life was turning in ways that seemed somehow planned. She'd recently moved back to Pittsburgh to be near her close-knit, traditional Greek family. Her father, owner of the landmark Harris Grill just a mile from Carnegie Mellon, had once dreamed of his technically savvy daughter attending the school. She'd chosen a different course. Now, years and many cities later, Tsamitis was home again.
She happened to notice a local classified ad with an actual phone number, which she set aside and promptly forgot about. As she cleaned her desk weeks later, it reappeared. She felt compelled to call and was hired by Carnegie Mellon's Office of Technology for Education the next day.
A year later, Tsamitis' father passed away. Within days, the university's Information Networking Institute chose her to design what would become Carnegie Mellon's first international degree program—offered in, of all places, Greece.
Just six months later, sitting with her mother, Tsamitis noticed the local newspaper's front-page story heralding the program she'd developed. She picked it up and read out loud: "Carnegie Mellon University will establish a campus for teaching and research in Greece. Formal announcement is planned for today."
Her mother said simply, "Dena, it's what you were born to do."
The words of Tsamitis' mother, who has since passed away, were prophetic. Through a series of promotions, Tsamitis became the institute's director. Under her leadership, it has grown to encompass five programs in six global locations. This accomplishment, along with other cybersecurity initiatives, has earned her national recognition. She recently won the Women of Influence Award from the Executive Women's Forum, which recognizes national leaders in the information security field.
—Melissa Silmore (TPR'85)
