About

What is PREP?

First announced in March 2011 by the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development, the Partnership for Regional Economic Performance (PREP) program seeks to achieve three primary goals:

1. “To encourage regional coordination of economic development efforts,”
2. To yield “superior customer service to the business community,” and
3. To foster “a comprehensive, efficient, statewide economic development delivery strategy.”

PREP was designed to streamline the state’s portfolio of economic development programs, and also encourage the development of new regional approaches to program management and delivery. It directed that a number of the state’s leading economic development entities, the Industrial Resource Center network (IRC), the Small Business Development Center network (SBDC), the state’s seven Local Development Districts(LDD), and the many industrial development organizations that operate at various local levels, come together to develop new regional partnerships to share services and activities.

The NEPA PREP initiative serves seven counties: Carbon, Lackawanna, Luzerne, Monroe, Pike, Schuylkill, and Wayne. Within this service area, fourteen different partner organizations are formal members of NEPA PREP. They include:

• Local Development District: The Northeast Pennsylvania Alliance
• Small Business Development Centers at the University of Scranton and Wilkes University.
• The Northeastern Pennsylvania Industrial Resource Centers and the Manufacturers Resource Center, which is headquartered in Bethlehem, PA.
• Local Industrial Development Organizations: Berwick Industrial Development Association, CAN-DO Inc. (Hazleton), Carbon County Economic Development Corporation, Monroe County Industrial Development Authority, the Pike County Economic Development Authority, Schuylkill County Economic Development Corporation, Scranton-Lackawanna Industrial Building Company, and the Wayne Economic Development Corporation.

As a hub for the region’s business support organizations, NEPA PREP provides a powerful network of regional experts who can help business owners address nearly every type of challenge facing their companies. In addition to the services provided directly by specific PREP partners, the network can also help firms access critical state and federal resources, such as loans, grants, technical assistance, or other support. Each year, the NEPA PREP partners provide services to approximately 1,000 local customers, primarily local businesses but also individual residents who are looking to learn about business start-up and management.

PREP Contact Information

Mr. Jeffrey K. Box
President & CEO
Northeastern Pennsylvania Alliance
1151 Oak Street Pittston, PA 18640
Telephone 570-655-5581
Email