The American Consulting Engineers Council of Pennsylvania (ACEC/PA) presented Joseph P. McAtee, PE, PLS, FCMAA, with its 15th Annual ACEC/PA Distinguished Award of Merit.  The award is granted to a consulting engineering firm principal who has been an outstanding person in the business of consulting engineering; been involved in service to ACEC/PA; served to influence decision-making on issues of importance to consulting engineers; been an outstanding individual who has been involved in community service and has demonstrated a sustained commitment to his/her community; and who has been active in ACEC/PA for at least five years.

The 2011 Distinguished Award of Merit was presented to McAtee at the ACEC/PA Diamond Awards Banquet on in Hershey, PA.

McAtee is a principal and Executive Vice President of Urban Engineers, Inc.  He joined Urban in 1967 and became one of its principal owners in 1993.  A graduate ofDrexel University with a Bachelor of Science Degree in Civil Engineering, McAtee is an active member of numerous professional societies and a recognized leader in his profession.  He was President of ACEC/PA from 2007 to 2008.  In 2005, he was appointed to the Construction Management Association of America (CMAA) Foundation Board.  In 2004, the CMAA elected him to its College of Fellows.  In 2003, he was named Chairman of the Construction Manager Certification Institute.  In 2001, the Philadelphia Section of the American Society of Civil Engineers named McAtee its Civil Engineer of the Year.