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

Kaylie Rowe

Pre-professional program helps land spot at one of world's top veterinary schools

You might say Kaylie Rowe’s spark for animal care ignited when the town’s “crazy cat lady” walked into her mother’s workplace when Rowe was a child. “I have kittens that need homes!” she declared.One of those kittens, a black domestic shorthair na...

  • College of Innovation, Discovery, and Enterprise
  • 2026
Eric Recktenwald

Department of Science chair loves to dive into research with students

Though he wears hats as associate professor of both biology and physical therapy and as the Department of Science chair at Alvernia University, at the heart of everything Eric Recktenwald does is research. That, and his students.  A grad...

  • College of Innovation, Discovery, and Enterprise
  • 2026
David Shoup 2023

College of STEAM dean wants students to feel valued

There’s a reason – perhaps many actually – why you’ll almost always find students waiting outside of David Shoup’s office door: He’s there for them and wants them to feel like they are cared about and a part of the Alvernia family.Shoup came to Al...

  • College of Innovation, Discovery, and Enterprise
  • 2026
Matthew Prudente

Collaboration adds to Alvernia experience, mathematics professor says

It may have been its location that drew Dr. Matthew Prudente to Alvernia University five years ago, but it’s the sense of community that keeps him here.  “Everything is collaborative,” said the associate professor of mathematics and chair of ...

  • College of Innovation, Discovery, and Enterprise
  • 2026