UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Jeffrey P. Merritt, a 1985 architectural engineering graduate, member and former chair of Penn State Harrisburg’s Board of Advisers and a longtime leader in the construction management industry, was named a 2024 Alumni Fellow. Merritt was one of 12 Penn State alumni honored for their outstanding professional accomplishments and named Alumni Fellows, the most prestigious designation given by the Penn State Alumni Association.
Since the award was established in 1973, more than 800 alumni have been honored with the title of Alumni Fellow — designated a permanent and lifelong title by the Penn State Board of Trustees — out of more than 750,000 living alumni.
Merritt was nominated for the honor by Penn State Harrisburg, where he and his wife, Jean, remain deeply connected, having invested in a variety of initiatives at the college.
With more than 30 years in progressive leadership roles over the course of his career, Merritt spent the bulk of his career with Reynolds Construction Management, based in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, where he served as COO and then president beginning in 2009. He and two Reynolds colleagues purchased the firm outright in 2013. Merritt continued to serve as an owner/manager until 2021, prior to his retirement.
Over his 35-year career, Merritt has been instrumental in developing superior educational spaces for public school districts and higher education institutions.
A graduate of Penn State’s University Park campus, Merritt actively contributes to the Penn State Harrisburg community, notably serving on the program advisory board for the unique design and construction program, SDCET. His leadership roles have extended to various academic and program-level campus advisory boards. In the early 2000s, Merritt played a key role in the development of comprehensive four-year undergraduate engineering degree programs at Penn State Harrisburg, which were launched in 2003 and have since become a model for the college.
In addition to this experience, he served for over 15 years on the college’s Board of Advisers, including serving as chair.
Merritt's community involvement includes board positions with York Catholic High School, the Misericordia Nursing & Rehabilitation Center, and previously with Big Brothers, Big Sisters of America. In recognition of his contributions to the construction industry, he was inducted into the Architectural Engineering Partnership for Achieving Construction Excellence (PACE) Hall of Fame at Penn State in 2015.
He and his wife have demonstrated their commitment to education through significant philanthropic efforts at Penn State Harrisburg. They established the Merritt Program Fund for Teacher Education with a $100,000 gift to support teacher education in STEM fields. Additionally, their $1 million legacy gift will fund the Merritt Professorship in Teacher Education endowment, aimed at advancing teaching, research, and public service in the STEM fields.
Merritt is a lifetime member of the Penn State Alumni Association. He and his wife reside in York, Pennsylvania. They have three children who are all Penn State graduates.