Wall Street West is a not-for-profit partnership in Northeastern Pennsylvania that is enhancing the financial services, information technology and related industries in the commonwealth through strategic workforce development and state-of-the-art economic development. Stemming from an interagency report by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Department of the Treasury

United States Department of the Treasury

The Department of the Treasury is an executive department and the treasury of the United States federal government. It was established by an Act of Congress in 1789 to manage government revenue...

 – whose recommendations make the nine-county region an optimal geographic location for secure data back-up and back office operations – the goal of Wall Street West is to work with firms in New York City

New York City

New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...

 and the surrounding metropolitan threat zones to establish supplemental facilities to safeguard data, fund the education and training of a growing workforce, and expand the competitiveness and potential of these industries.

The Wall Street West partnership is made up of the top-tier economic development agencies; technology investment groups; workforce development organizations; education and research institutions; and private sector companies in the region. With the Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Northeastern Pennsylvania acting as the project manager, Wall Street West has federal support through a $15 million Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development

Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development

Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development was a project of the United States Department of Labor. It provided a new approach to workforce and economic development...

 (WIRED) grant from the U.S. Department of Labor for education and job training, as well as a combined $24 million commitment by the U.S. Department of Commerce, the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development

Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development

Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development is a cabinet-level state agency in Pennsylvania.The Financially Distressed Municipalities Act , also known as Act 47, empowers the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development to declare certain municipalities in...

, and private industry to enhance existing infrastructure.

WIRED Grants

In order to fulfill the goals of the Wall Street West Initiative, the group has obtained more than $15 million in funding from the U.S. Department of Labor.

• Bridging the Gap (A collaboration of Right Reason Technologies and East Stroudsburg University)
• Workforce Development Program for Financial Services (Lehigh Valley Workforce Investment Board and Lehigh University
  Lehigh University
  Lehigh University is a private, co-educational university located in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the United States. It was established in 1865 by Asa Packer as a four-year technical school, but has grown to include studies in a wide variety of disciplines...
  
  )
• Financial Literacy Institute for Junior and High School Teachers and Students (University of Scranton
  University of Scranton
  The University of Scranton is a private, co-educational Catholic and Jesuit university, located in Scranton, Pennsylvania, in the northeast region of the state. The school was founded in 1888 by Most Rev. William O'Hara, the first Bishop of Scranton, as St. Thomas College. It was elevated to a...
  
   and College Misericordia
  College Misericordia
  Misericordia University is a four-year, Catholic, co-educational liberal arts university located on a campus in Dallas, Pennsylvania, near the cities of Wilkes-Barre and Scranton. It was founded by the Religious Sisters of Mercy on August 15, 1924...
  
  )
• KIZ Intern Program (Created by the state Keystone Innovation Zone programs)
• Wall Street West Academy (Lehigh Carbon Community College
  Lehigh Carbon Community College
  Lehigh Carbon Community College is a two-year community college located in Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, in the Lehigh Valley region of the state. The school serves as the primary granter of associate degrees in the Allentown area....
  
  )
• Originate Ventures Internship (Originate Ventures)
• Financial Services Competency Models (People Front and Center)
• Foreign Currency Trading Course and Trading Laboratory (University of Scranton and CEREBRONIX)
• Innovation Institute Professional Development & Curriculum Planning Project (Lehigh Carbon Community College)
• King’s College Economic Certificate Program (King's College and Prudential Financial)
• King's College Mathematics Summer Institute (King's College)
• Northeastern Pennsylvania Partnership for Workforce Development in Information Assurance (Regional Penn State campuses)
• Open Court (Compass Point & Originate Venture)
• Wall Street West Community Collaborative: Facilitating the Education and Workforce Development of the Financial Services Industry 8(PA Commission for Community Colleges)
• Your Employability Skills Certificate Program (Northeastern Pennsylvania Manufacturers and Employers Council)
• Building a Regional Global Language Infrastructure Program (The Center for Advancing Partnership in Education)
• Accelerated BBA Degree Program (Wilkes University)
• Security and Risk Analysis and Mitigation for Area College and Secondary Education, Industry, Community and Future Area Professionals Program (Penn State Worthington Scranton)
• GED Completers Transitioning to Postsecondary Education to Prepare for Employment in High Growth Industries Program (Luzerne County Community College)
• Enterprise Resource Planning Program (The University of Scranton’s Kania School of Management)
• Master’s of Science Degree in Financial Information Systems Program (Marywood University)
• Business Continuity Training and Marketing Analysis Program (East Stroudsburg University)
• Leveraging Information Security Education and Training through Web-Based Distance Learning Program (Penn State Berks)
• WorkKeys Assessment to Provide a Baseline for Curriculum Development and Skills Gap Identification Program (Luzerne County Community College)
• Collaboration for Workforce Readiness (Junior Achievement of Northeastern Pennsylvania)
• Project Lead the Way (Penn State Berks)
• Preparing Tomorrow’s Financial Services Manpower (Misericordia University)
• 21st Century Career Guidance Partnership (The Pike / Wayne Education Partnership)
• Middle Grade & High School Traditional & Non-Traditional Program Expansion (Junior Achievement Berks)
• Wall Street West Business and Finance Dual Enrollment Initiative (The Lehigh Career & Technical Institute)
• The Financial Industry Training and Support Program (The Northeast Pennsylvania Employment Consortium)
• NEPA Business Education Workforce Partnership (Lehigh Valley Workforce Investment Board)
• Wall Street West Higher Education Consortium (GSP Consulting)
• Building a 21st Century Workforce Delivery System Project (Workforce Wayne)
• Science, Technology, Engineering and Math Center—Northeast PA (TeamPA Foundation)
• Industry Partnership and Worker Training Program (Lackawanna County Workforce Investment Board)
• Intellectual Property Management Model (Lehigh University)
• The Knowledge Management Institute (University of Scranton)
• Pathways to an Engineering Career Program (Lehigh Career and Technical Institute)
• Turning on TORQ (Berks County Workforce Investment Board)