{"id":78227,"date":"2026-01-05T12:20:43","date_gmt":"2026-01-05T12:20:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/78227\/"},"modified":"2026-01-05T12:20:43","modified_gmt":"2026-01-05T12:20:43","slug":"cathy-rychalsky-ready-to-lead-workforce-board-lehigh-valley-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/78227\/","title":{"rendered":"Cathy Rychalsky ready to lead Workforce Board Lehigh Valley"},"content":{"rendered":"

Cathy Rychalsky has had a long career helping people, especially those looking for a job.<\/p>\n

While in college, she found her passion during a summer job as a state monitor \u00a0under the Job Training Partnership Act that turned into a full-time gig and later a management position.<\/p>\n

As the new executive director of Workforce Board Lehigh Valley, Rychalsky will get an opportunity to bring her experience to a fast-growing area. Recent statistics from the Lehigh Valley Planning Commission predict that the region will see more than 80,000 more jobs<\/a> by 2050.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis work is really good work,\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cI think that this is why I\u2019m so passionate about workforce development. It is the system that can change people\u2019s lives. You can come in here, and you don\u2019t have your high school diploma. You could have your Ph.D., and you could be anywhere in between there. And need to be connected to the workforce system. You might need to learn how to write a resume or to do a job interview, and we could help people change their lives.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, stands in the Career Link office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, speaks in her office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, speaks in her office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, speaks in her office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, stands in the Career Link office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

\"Workforce<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, stands in the Career Link office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

Show Caption<\/p>\n

1 of 6<\/p>\n

Workforce Board Lehigh Valley\u2019s new executive director, Cathy Rychalsky, stands in the Career Link office Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025, in Allentown. Rychalsky joined the board in October, replacing longtime leader Nancy Dischinat, who announced her retirement in July and died in November. (Amy Shortell \/ The Morning Call)\n<\/p>\n

Expand<\/a><\/p>\n

Before coming to the Lehigh Valley, Rychalsky, 52, worked in several social service organizations and in state government, including at the Department of Human Services. Her experience with community action programs includes the Children\u2019s Health Insurance Program and energy conservation.<\/p>\n

Most recently, she was in her hometown working for the Lancaster County\u2019s Workforce Development Board. One of her initiatives there was Skillup Lancaster, a program that connected job seekers and employers that was eventually adopted on a statewide basis.<\/p>\n

\u201cI truly believe that it was an honor to be able to transition that organization to a very high-functioning board,\u201d said Rychalsky, who has a bachelor\u2019s degree from Elizabethtown College and a master\u2019s from Penn State-Harrisburg.<\/p>\n

The Morning Call recently sat down with Rychalsky in her new office at the Lehigh Valley\u2019s PA CareerLink building at 555 Union Blvd. in Allentown.<\/p>\n

Why the Lehigh Valley?<\/p>\n

Rychalsky grew up in Lancaster County, where her mother still lives, and has a sister in Bucks County, so she is familiar with the Lehigh Valley.<\/p>\n

She was also familiar, both professionally and personally, with iconic Workforce Board Lehigh Valley leader<\/a> Nancy Dischinat, who died in November<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to be somewhere where the communities we serve are intentional about the work that\u2019s getting done,\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cNancy really built a strong foundation, some strong partnerships, and being able to build upon that foundation in a space where I felt I could connect. That was an important part of it.\u201d<\/p>\n

It was a good place to land at this point in her career. She first thought about it after Dischinat, who planned to retire, posted the opening.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor me, it was about looking at where I was in my career and where do I want to, hopefully, finish my career,\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cIf it\u2019s in workforce development, I want to make sure that the area aligns with who I am as a person. Like, how can I really contribute to the community where I land? That\u2019s kind of what it was all involved in that process of looking at the Lehigh Valley as my next space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Lehigh Valley vs. Lancaster<\/p>\n

Lancaster County has a diverse economy. Besides a large agricultural component, it has a small entertainment industry. Like the Lehigh Valley, there are strong manufacturing and medical industries.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom an industry perspective, retail trades is an important market segment, as it is in Lancaster,\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cConstruction, I don\u2019t think is nearly as robust [as Lancaster], although I see it picking up here, which is really cool. You see it when you drive around and go around downtown there. You see the revitalization that kind of occurred already in Lancaster.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo seeing that happening here is really exciting, getting to see the infusion of investment into parts of the communities,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m excited about it. So from an industry space, agriculture does play a huge part here. I think there\u2019s a lot of overlay in the industries.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Valley\u2019s potential<\/p>\n

Rychalsky wants to move the Lehigh Valley forward and integrate it into the growing world of artificial intelligence.<\/p>\n

\u201cObviously, it\u2019s the hot ticket,\u201d she said. \u201cAs a community we want to make sure we understand what that means. What it means for job seekers and for businesses. And how do we, I think this is really where we\u2019re going to put a lot of attention, is just ensuring that it\u2019s not going to replace people in all aspects of our life, nor should it.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut getting a true understanding of what it looks like for our communities, for our industries, and for people, because people are afraid they\u2019re going to lose jobs. Some will, but that doesn\u2019t mean new jobs are not going to be created. That gives us an opportunity to teach people new skill sets.<\/p>\n

Apprenticeships will also be important. Dischinat helped launch the Industrial Training and Education Consortium of the Lehigh Valley, a first-of-its-kind apprenticeship program that provides industrial skills training and develops a workforce to meet the needs of the Valley\u2019s growing manufacturing sector. It is a partnership of industry, education, government and community organizations to promote careers in advanced manufacturing.<\/p>\n

\u201cI want to make sure that our training is aligned with the new skill sets,\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cI think that\u2019s a really huge opportunity for us. I also think there\u2019s a lot of money that\u2019s going to be invested into apprenticeship and preapprenticeship programs that will give people the opportunity to earn and learn at the same time.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou\u2019re getting a skill set that you can take with you anywhere. And so that is a huge opportunity for us.\u201d<\/p>\n

A tough job market<\/p>\n

Rychalsky says she hears from employers about ghosting when job candidates apply for a job then abruptly cut off contact. On the other hand, job candidates have had similar complaints from businesses.<\/p>\n

She says that communication is important for both sides.<\/p>\n

\u201cI am a firm believer in talking to the people coming into the workforce,\u201d she said. \u201cI think it\u2019s so important that any program you run is relevant to the people you serve, right? I have a chance to talk to people as they\u2019re moving through, maybe they\u2019re visiting, or I\u2019m out at a restaurant and they\u2019re a server and I ask them, like, tell me, like, what do you appreciate about this? What is missing? What would you like to see differently?<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd they hear the same thing. Like, \u2018I apply for a job and I don\u2019t hear anything back.\u2019 And so I think it\u2019s important as an employer, as a business representative to make sure that if we\u2019re saying we don\u2019t appreciate that, that we are also not doing the same thing, right? So, from that space is just being really mindful that we\u2019re practicing what we preach.\u201d<\/p>\n

She said workers want to be treated as a person and not a number<\/p>\n

\u201cOne thing I hear from young people is they want to earn a paycheck, but [for employers to] just understand who they are as an individual and what makes them tick,\u201d Rychalsky said, saying one worker told her a story about job where his production was posted on a scoreboard and it noted that he was behind other colleagues after he took a bathroom break.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s important to understand what it is that your employees are looking for and that they are humans, just like you and I,\u201d she said. \u201cSo I think there are things that, as we talk to the business community \u2014 what does your work look like? What does your culture look like? How does that align with the needs of the people coming into the workforce? I think that\u2019s an important part of it.<\/p>\n

Looking ahead<\/p>\n

A critical long-range concern is ensuring there are skilled workers ready to take over as many people transition out of the workforce over the next 15 years. As baby boomers retire from the workforce in growing numbers \u2014 the so-called silver tsunami \u2014 there will be a hole in the job market.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are not as many kids being born today, so what does that mean for the long range and how are businesses planning for that?\u201d Rychalsky said. \u201cWhile people are going to be moving into the Valley, there are a lot of people who are going to be transitioning out from the workforce.<\/p>\n

\u201cSo is there the back fill to support [the openings] and do their skills align? And if not, how do we make sure we are investing money into programs to connect those skills to the jobs that are here?\u201d<\/p>\n

That will be the mission the Workforce Board and CareerLink will be working on in upcoming years.<\/p>\n

Taking over from a legend<\/p>\n

Rychalsky said Dischinat, who ran the Workforce Board for more than 40 years, was a \u201cforce of nature.\u201d She was one of the first people Rychalsky reached out to when she was in charge of the workforce board in Lancaster.<\/p>\n

\u201cI wanted to go see where the best things were happening,\u201d she said. \u201cI truly consider this to be an honor to be able to come in behind Nancy.<\/p>\n

\u201cShe built a really strong foundation. I\u2019m excited to really do some creative things that align with Lehigh Valley and where we\u2019re going as a community in 2026. That\u2019s where you start. And then you build up and we get to do some cool things. So I always appreciated Nancy. Our styles are probably very different, but I just really enjoyed her.\u201d<\/p>\n

Outside the office<\/p>\n

Outside work, Rychalsky loves going to the beach, as well as reading, solving puzzles, cooking, baking, hiking, paddle boarding and yoga. She also spends time with her family, which includes her husband, three daughters (and a son-in-law) and two sisters.<\/p>\n

\u201cI spend as much time with my mom as I can \u2014 I lost my dad when he was 59, so I never take time for granted when it comes to spending it with her,\u201d Rychalsky said.<\/p>\n

Morning Call reporter Evan Jones can be reached at ejones@mcall.com.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Cathy Rychalsky has had a long career helping people, especially those looking for a job. While in college,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":78228,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[10],"tags":[119,121,120,60,433,182,139,434,28,432],"class_list":{"0":"post-78227","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-allentown","8":"tag-allentown","9":"tag-allentown-headlines","10":"tag-allentown-news","11":"tag-business","12":"tag-lehigh-county","13":"tag-local-news","14":"tag-news","15":"tag-northampton-county","16":"tag-pennsylvania","17":"tag-top-stories-tmc"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78227","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=78227"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/78227\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/78228"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=78227"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=78227"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=78227"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}