Student Achievements

Student Leaders 2025

Student Achievements

Welcome to Alvernia's hub for student achievements. Alvernia University uses Merit to create thousands of personalized stories to celebrate and publicize the great things done by our students. Using this page, students and their supporters can share exciting news about their accomplishments quickly and easily.

Check out our Merit page to see what others are doing on campus & read the Merit FAQs below to set up your page & get the most out of it. If you have questions about Merit, email news@alvernia.edu or call 610-796-8281.
 

Merit FAQs

How does Merit work?
  • Students win awards and honors or participate in campus events and activities.
  • The Marketing and Communications Department gets a list of the students involved and writes a short story about the accomplishment.
  • A personalized article is published to Merit and Alvernia's social media accounts. It is also sent to the local newspaper(s), high school(s) and government representative(s) of each student involved.
  • Students & their supporters get an e-mail to their Alvernia e-mail with a link to view their story, share their achievements with friends and family or easily link it to social media accounts, online portfolios or their resume.
How do students set up their profile?
  • Students receive an email during the fall semester of their first year at Alvernia with all of the instructions.
  • Miss the email? Click here. Merit offers a quick tutorial and other resources on its website.
  • Students can customize their Merit profiles with a profile picture, background image, biography and add their other activities in which employers might be interested.
How can supporters receive updates on student achievements?
  • Supporters receive a direct email for each of their students' achievements with direct and easy-to-share links.
  • Additional supporters can be added to receive updates on Merit's sign-up page. Be sure to add your first and last name, your email and your student's Alvernia University e-mail. 
How can Alvernia faculty and staff submit news/achievements?

Submit a story through the contribution form or e-mail news@alvernia.edu. The Office of Marketing and Communications Department will review submissions before distribution and reach out with follow-up questions if needed. In order to fill out the form, you will need:

  • Students' first and last names and Alvernia University email addresses
  • Background information on the award, event, experience. Think "who, what, where, when & why?"
  • Photo(s) and/or video(s) of the group
  • A quote from a faculty or staff member
  • Quotes from one or two students 


For more information using the contribution form please use this guide or watch this video.

Can students manage privacy settings?

We respect students’ wishes to keep their accomplishments private. Opting out of Merit is easy and not only removes a student’s page from meritpages.com, but also prevents Alvernia or any other participating Merit organization from being able to publish achievements about that student in the future. To opt out, simply reply to the email you receive from Merit and ask to be removed. If you are unable to locate the email, please click here. Reach out to news@alvernia.edu with questions.

Success stories

Search for success stories at Alvernia

Erin McAleer, native of Wantagh, Long Island, graduate of Alvernia's MSOT program.

Clinical experiences lands OT grad rewarding job placement

Erin McAleer, a 2019 graduate of Alvernia University’s Master of Science in Occupational Therapy (MSOT) program, grew up in Wantagh, N.Y., attending St. William the Abbot School. Immediately following her graduation, McAleer accepted a position as...

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Tom Franek

He finds joy in helping students find their 'lightbulb moments'

Dr. Thomas Franek started at Alvernia University during the 2015-2016 year, but has nearly 20 years of experience as an educator and 30 years of practical experience. Once an active high school athlete, the associate professor of athleti...

  • College of Health Sciences
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Reading Collegiate Scholar Sarah Verneret

Scholarships open vast world of real-world learning opportunities

“College was always something I wanted and my family always wanted, but we didn’t know how to make it happen,” said Sarah Verneret '19. So, she applied for an Alvernia University scholarship to help fund her education. “When we found out I was goi...

  • College of Business, Communication, and Leadership
  • 2021
MBA student in the library

MBA graduate parlays 'incredible internship' into full-time job

Robert Kelly, a 2018 MBA graduate, immersed himself in real-world learning experiences while attending Alvernia. In addition to his role as a graduate assistant in the university’s Franco Library, Kelly served as an intern at C...

  • College of Business, Communication, and Leadership
  • 2021