Northeast Pennsylvania has been at the center of an economic transformation before.<\/p>\n
Generations ago, anthracite coal helped power the Industrial Revolution and preserve democracy around the world by fueling Allied forces in World War II. Anthracite fueled factories, railroads and cities across a growing nation. My father and grandfather were anthracite miners, and like thousands of families across our region, my family experienced firsthand what it meant for Northeast Pennsylvania to help power America\u2019s economic growth and the devastating impact of the decline of mining industry.<\/p>\n
Today, we have an opportunity to play an important role in another economic transformation, one that can be sustained through economic downturns: the digital revolution of a new technological age.<\/p>\n
Advancing technologies are rapidly changing how Americans work, learn, and compete in the global economy. But this technology requires an enormous amount of digital infrastructure \u2014 transmission, compute, and data centers -\u2014 \u00a0which must be built, powered, connected, secured, maintained and continually upgraded. There is no boom and bust cycle \u2014 energy and technology are now fundamental to sustaining both the economic and military power of the United States.<\/p>\n
For Northeast Pennsylvania, that creates an opportunity much larger than any single economic development project. It gives us the chance to build a workforce around one of the fastest-growing sectors of the American economy and create pathways to good careers for people who already call this region home.<\/p>\n
At Luzerne County Community College, we are partnering with the Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges to build Pennsylvania\u2019s first statewide skilled trade educational and workforce ecosystem through an initiative known as PA\u00a0 Works! In 2025, LCCC launched our Career & Technology Academy in partnership with Hazleton Area Career Center, Wilkes-Barre Area Career & Technical Center, and West Side Career & Technology Center. The program allows high school students to begin earning college credits while still attending their high school and technical school, with training available in fields including welding, plumbing and HVAC.<\/p>\n
Those are precisely the kinds of skills that major energy and technology projects require. Building and maintaining data centers requires electricians, HVAC professionals, plumbers, construction workers, fiber technicians, network specialists and other skilled professionals. These are skilled trade jobs that cannot simply be outsourced overseas. They require workers here, in our communities, with the right education and training.<\/p>\n
And the need in the emerging skilled trade economy is great. Workforce projections from the Pennsylvania Departments of Education and Labor & Industry indicate that by 2030, the Commonwealth will need approximately 300,000 skilled workers across high-demand sectors including energy, manufacturing and technology. Factor in the reality that nearly 40 percent of the current skilled-trades workforce is expected to retire within the next decade and you can grasp the enormous workforce challenge facing Pennsylvanian.<\/p>\n
Pennsylvania\u2019s community colleges are responding together. The Pennsylvania Commission for Community Colleges recently entered into a statewide agreement with TradesFutures to implement a registered construction pre-apprenticeship curriculum and apprenticeship-readiness model. Through that partnership, LCCC is launching the L3C Building & Construction Trade Apprenticeship Readiness Academy. Together, community colleges across the Commonwealth are working through the PA Works! initiative to strengthen connections among colleges, career and technical schools, and employers.<\/p>\n
The goal is straightforward: when new investment comes to Pennsylvania, Pennsylvanians should be prepared for the jobs it creates. At Luzerne County Community College, that is exactly the type of opportunity we want our students to be prepared to seize.<\/p>\n
For a high school student in Luzerne County, that could mean entering a skilled profession without taking on the debt associated with a traditional four-year path. For someone already in the workforce, it could mean gaining a new credential and moving into a higher-demand career. For our communities, it means more of the economic benefit generated by major investment stays here.<\/p>\n
We should be clear about the kind of development we want. Northeast Pennsylvania should welcome companies that are serious about investing here, creating opportunity here, and becoming long-term partners in the communities where they build.<\/p>\n
That means developers should pay their own way, invest in the infrastructure their projects require, be transparent, and responsibly address energy and water needs. Just as important, they should invest in the people who live here by creating local career pathways, supporting workforce training, and working with community colleges, career and technical schools, and apprenticeship programs to prepare Pennsylvanians for the jobs these projects can create.<\/p>\n
Companies willing to make those commitments should know that Northeast Pennsylvania wants their investment. Responsible development and economic growth are not competing goals. Done right, they reinforce one another, creating jobs, strengthening our workforce, and ensuring that communities share in the benefits of new investment.<\/p>\n
We cannot afford to let this opportunity pass us by. Other regions are competing for the investment, infrastructure, and jobs being created by the digital economy. Northeast Pennsylvania has the workforce institutions, industrial history and determination to compete for that future. We should set a high standard for companies that want to build here and then welcome those that are prepared to meet it.<\/p>\n
Our region knows what happens when economies change. We also know what happens when communities are given the tools to adapt, compete, and build something new.<\/p>\n
More than a century ago, Northeast Pennsylvania workers helped provide the energy that powered America\u2019s industrial rise. Today, a new generation of Pennsylvania workers can help build the data centers that support Northeast Pennsylvania\u2019s leadership in advanced technology that will sustain and enhance America\u2019s role as a global economic and military power.<\/p>\n
The technology may have changed, but Northeast Pennsylvania has yet another opportunity to help power America\u2019s future. Together, with purpose and prudence we can shape the technological revolution driving the 21st century economy.<\/p>\n
John Yudichak is president of Luzerne County Community College.<\/p>\n
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