CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — According to a report from Axios, Pennsylvania is the only state in the Northeast with a growing economy, making well-qualified job seekers in high demand. In response, Penn State Lehigh Valley is focusing on giving students the tools they need to stand out in a competitive job market.
Students can complete 12 four-year degree programs at Penn State Lehigh Valley, and many graduates are expected to find full-time job opportunities just miles from campus.
“In the coming months, we will fully build out our work-based learning initiative that helps our students translate their skills and experiences into compelling job applications,” said Lehigh Valley Chancellor Tina Richardson. “Our students are working while completing their degrees. They are helping at home. They have internships. They are volunteering and engaging in the community. They understand what it takes to keep this community growing and strong.”
Campus well-positioned for local opportunity
Richardson said the campus is strategically positioned to capitalize on emerging opportunities in the region. One example is the recent announcement by Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro of an historic $3.5 billion investment from global pharmaceutical firm Eli Lilly and Co. to build a new manufacturing facility in the Lehigh Valley.
“Lilly’s commitment to the Lehigh Valley and to Pennsylvania will bring billions of dollars of investment and hundreds of good-paying jobs,” Shapiro said in the announcement, “solidifying our position as a leader in the growing life sciences industry.”
Located in Upper Macungie Township, the new facility will produce Lilly’s weight-loss drugs and is expected to create more than 850 permanent jobs when it opens in 2031.
“We're creating high-quality jobs and collaborating across the region — with suppliers, educators and workforce development partners — to make critical medicines in the U.S.,” said David A. Ricks, Lilly chair and CEO.
Lehigh Valley faculty looking forward
Mark M. Capofari, assistant teaching professor of project supply chain management, spent decades in the pharmaceutical industry and now brings his real-world experiences to the classroom.
“Projects of this magnitude [like the new manufacturing facility] elevate the importance of advanced logistics infrastructure and project-management planning,” said Capofari . “Pharmaceutical manufacturing requires precision, redundancy and visibility across every stage of the network. Penn State’s emphasis on supply-chain education and applied research is helping the region build the workforce and infrastructure needed for long-term growth in this sector."
Tracey Carbonetto, associate teaching professor and program coordinator of Penn State Lehigh Valley’s new four-year engineering degree program, emphasized that faculty members’ extensive regional industry experience helps prepare graduates with the applied knowledge and competencies needed to meet current workforce demands.
“Penn State Lehigh Valley established its on-campus, four-year engineering degree program in direct response to the region’s economic growth,” Carbonetto said. “Students gain hands-on experience through internships and work-based learning, rigorous academic preparation, and a strong foundation in artificial intelligence as it applies to modern manufacturing. Graduates are well positioned to become the next generation of engineering leaders in the Lehigh Valley.”
Rapid advances in artificial intelligence and data-driven systems are creating new workforce demands across the Lehigh Valley, according to Penn State Lehigh Valley faculty.
“The advent of transformative new technologies such as artificial intelligence and large language models underscores the need for a highly skilled IT workforce in the Lehigh Valley,” said Jeffrey A. Stone, associate professor of information sciences and technology. “The use of these tools, coupled with the large datasets and data centers they require, means that the integrity and security of data have never been more important.”
Stone emphasized that need is already apparent.
“This importance crosses all industrial sectors, including the pharmaceutical industry,” he said. “At Penn State Lehigh Valley, our Information Technology and Cybersecurity Analytics & Operations students are learning essential skills to face these challenges, combining technical competence with ethical, critical and contextual thinking skills.”
Penn State investing in the Lehigh Valley
In 2026, Penn State Lehigh Valley will expand into Downtown Allentown with an 8,500-square-foot space at the Hamilton at Grand Plaza. Home to the Lehigh Valley LaunchBox, the facility will serve as a resource hub for the local entrepreneurial community.
The space will also support local veterans, the Allentown School District and community partners seeking to engage in the revitalization of the city’s core.
Community-focused initiatives like this are central to the Lehigh Valley campus’ strategic plan and closely aligned with the University’s land-grant mission.
“Our goal is to remain accessible to students, deeply engaged with the community and to strengthen Pennsylvania’s economy by graduating workforce-ready professionals,” Richardson said. “We are proud to be located in one of the commonwealth’s most dynamic and rapidly growing regions.”
About Penn State Lehigh Valley
Founded in 1912, Penn State Lehigh Valley combines more than a century of academic excellence with personalized instruction delivered by industry-connected faculty. The campus serves students from Bucks County, Lehigh County, Northampton County and surrounding regions, as well as students from across the country and around the world. Penn State Lehigh Valley offers 12 bachelor’s degree programs that can be completed entirely on campus and provides pathways into more than 275 Penn State majors through the University’s 2+2 program.