John Meegan Elected to Board of Northwest Bancshares, Inc.

WARREN, Pa., April 22 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- John P. Meegan has been elected to the Board of Directors of Northwest Bancshares, Inc. William J. Wagner, Chairman and CEO of Northwest Bancshares, Inc., made the announcement.

As a Member of the Board, Mr. Meegan's primary responsibility is to provide oversight to the activities of the company's management team and its strategic direction. Northwest Bancshares, Inc. (Nasdaq Global Select Market: NWBI) operates Northwest Savings Bank, a full-service financial institution that holds assets in excess of $8 billion and operates 171 community banking locations in Pennsylvania, the Southern Tier of New York, Ohio, Maryland, and Florida.

Mr. Meegan is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of Hefren-Tillotson, Inc., a major financial planning and investment advisory company based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Mr. Meegan is a Certified Public Accountant and a member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants. With over twenty-five years of experience in the securities industry, he has served on a wide variety of industry and regulatory committees. Currently, he serves as Chairman of the Financial Responsibility Committee and the Uniform Practice Committee of FINRA, The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority.

Prior to being elected to the Board of Northwest, he had served as a member of the Southwest Region Advisory Board of Northwest Savings Bank. He joined the Advisory Board, a group of the local business and professional community that keeps the bank appraised of local needs and conditions, since he joined in 2002 when Northwest acquired Prestige Bank, which he served as a Member of the Board.

Active in his community, Mr. Meegan is a Member of the Board of Directors of the Pennsylvania Economy League of Southwestern Pennsylvania and Chairperson of the Finance Committee and a member of the Free Health Care Clinic Board of the Catholic Charities of Pittsburgh.  He also works as a volunteer for his alma mater, Amherst College, aiding their alumni relations, athletic and fundraising efforts.

A native of Buffalo, New York, Mr. Meegan graduated from the Nichols School of Buffalo. He earned a B. A. Degree in Economics from Amherst College and a Masters of Business Administration from the Leonard Stern School of Business at New York University.

He and his wife, Cindy, live with their two daughters near Pittsburgh.

Northwest Bancshares is proud to have Mr. Meegan as a member of its corporate board. His wide-ranging civic involvement in Greater Pittsburgh, in addition to his industry and corporate experience, make him a valued addition.

SOURCE Northwest Bancorp, Inc.