Carnegie dean resigns over judgment error

PITTSBURGH, Aug. 18 (UPI) -- Officials at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh say one of its deans has resigned because of an “error in judgment” involving a graduate student.

Mark Wessel stepped down last week as dean of the university’s H. John Heinz III School of Public Policy after more than five years on the job, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported Monday.

The newspaper said students were told in an e-mail message last Friday that Wessel’s resignation involved the approval of “excessive” transfer credits and independent study courses for a student who received a master’s degree from the school in 2004.

The newspaper said federal privacy laws prohibited university officials from naming the student; however, the university is reviewing the degrees awarded in the past five years for any possible improprieties.

A replacement for Wessel was not immediately announced.