KAREN A. SWEENEY
Senior Vice President
Diversity, Inclusion and Community
Education
Pennsylvania State University
Bachelor of Architectural Engineering, 1980
Professional Affiliations & Associations:
• Penn State Engineering Alumni Society (PSEAS), Vice President 2010-2012, President 2012-14, Board Member since 2004
• Penn State Alumni Council 2012-2017, Executive Committee 2014--2015, Vice Chair Awards 2012--2014, Membership Committee 2016
• Penn State AE Industrial Professional Advisory Committee since 2006, Chair 2010
• Penn State Outstanding Engineering Alumna, Architectural Engineering, 2010
• Penn State Alumni Association, Alumni Fellow, 2014
• Founding Member: In Counsel with Women (Cleveland, Ohio)
• Leadership Cleveland, Class of 2001
• Member Society of Women Engineers
• Member ASCE, CAP CDI Committee 2013, strategic plan development
• Conference Board: Member US Council of Diversity and Inclusion Executives since 2010
35 years of construction experience
Karen Sweeney joined Turner Construction Company in 1980, upon graduation from Penn State University, as a Field Engineer in the Pittsburgh Business Unit. There she progressed through various office and field assignments.
She transferred to the San Diego, California business unit in 1985, where she worked on multiple phases of a large healthcare project. In 1989, she transferred to the Washington, DC business unit, in Arlington VA, where she worked in estimating and engineering. She moved on to the Special Projects Division (SPD), in the same business unit, starting as a Project Manager for several lab and interior projects and culminating in becoming the Division Manager in 1996. In July 1998, Karen was named Vice President.
In 2000, she was named Vice President and General Manager of the Cleveland, Ohio business unit, where she oversaw both field and business development operations. Karen was the first woman to head a Turner office.
In 2005, she moved back to the Mid-Atlantic region to become the Vice President and General Manager of the Maryland Business Unit. In February of 2009, she became Vice President Diversity and Inclusion, and in February 2014, promoted to Senior Vice President, Diversity, Inclusion and Community, reporting directly to Peter Davoren, President and CEO of Turner. As such, she leads Turner’s diversity, inclusion and community citizenship initiatives, collaborating with Human Resources, recruiting and career development activities, and focusing on internal representation and culture initiatives, as well as MWDBE representation and educational outreach across the organization.
Turner Construction Company, founded in 1902, and a wholly owned subsidiary of the Turner Corporation, the nation’s leading general builder, maintains a network of offices throughout the United States and Internationally. The company provides a broad range of construction services, including general construction, construction management, project management, design/build, planning and preconstruction, and feasibility studies.