Harrisburg student gains engineering experience on campus building project

MIDDLETOWN, Pa. - When Penn State Harrisburg civil engineering major Bailey McCloskey attended the fall 2024 Career Fair on campus, he met with representatives from many companies.

But the representatives from Alexander Building Construction mentioned something that really sparked his interest - an internship with the company might mean the chance to work on the Academic Learning Center (ALC), the new academic building being constructed on campus.

"That was my number one pick after they said that," McCloskey said. In spring 2025, he found out he'd gotten the job.

McCloskey, who expects to graduate from Penn State Harrisburg this December, began the internship right after finals week in May - not long after the groundbreaking for the ALC project.

Throughout the summer, he worked with the project engineers and managers, helping to get contractors the information and specifics they needed, doing markups for plans, and working with the foundation pours. The project superintendent had him focus on a lot of civil engineering aspects, since that's his major, he said, and he also walked the site to ensure safety.

"I've been just helping out where I can and I've learned a tremendous amount about the construction process and what goes into everything," he said.

Interns with Alexander do presentations, so McCloskey was able to see their projects as well as host them at the Harrisburg campus for a site tour and share his work with them. He also had the chance to attend a site tour at the Beaver Stadium renovation, another project Alexander is working on. At Harrisburg, McCloskey helped with the topping out ceremony for the ALC, when campus community members signed a beam before it was lifted into place.

He said the internship has provided the opportunity to apply what he's learned in his major.

"The classes have really taught me the fundamentals," he said. "And then this internship has solidified and showed me how I can apply that to what I want to do. … I definitely want to pursue construction."

Justin Wingenfield, senior project manager with Alexander Building Construction, said he's had the chance to work with a lot of interns through the years. The best interns, he said, are hungry for knowledge, work hard to better themselves and their project, and are committed to taking on a lot of the same tasks and responsibilities as entry level employees. They build relationships with team members and show up excited to help the team face the challenges of the industry.

"Bailey exhibited all these critical qualities over the course of his internship," Wingenfield said. "He showed up with a great attitude and was eager to learn. He was willing to do whatever he could to help the project, which quickly earned him the respect of his peers. He also bleeds blue and white (like many of our other alumni on staff), so he was thrilled to have the chance to help improve his campus for generations of students to come."

McCloskey's internship ended in August, and he's now working part-time on the ALC project while he finishes his last semester. After that, he said, he'll begin a full-time position with Alexander.

McCloskey said "rewarding" is the best way to describe the chance to work on the ALC project.

"It's just an extremely amazing opportunity. I love this campus," he said.