Allegheny Intermediate Unit
The Allegheny Intermediate Unit (AIU) is a branch of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, and is the largest of the 29 intermediate units in Pennsylvania. It was created by the state’s General Assembly in 1971, and is headquartered in Homestead. The AIU provides specialized education services to 42 suburban public school districts and five career and technical centers in Allegheny County. The agency, which has about 1,200 employees at nearly 400 sites throughout the county, also operates 10 family centers and three schools for exceptional children. Funded by federal, state, county and private grants, the AIU  coordinates more than 130 programs designed to help infants, young children, students and adults. In 2020, the programs offered by the AIU served more than 113,000 students in public schools. Leadership and Governance. The AIU's Board of Directors has 13 members, elected from Allegheny County's 42 suburban public school districts. Dr. Robert Scherrer is the agency's executive director. The Role of Intermediate Units. Pennsylvania’s intermediate units were created in 1971 in an effort to help school districts operate more efficiently and meet the specialized needs of their students. Since then, these education agencies have evolved into  an important resource on which school districts rely. School districts and intermediate units are separate legal entities. Intermediate units have no legal jurisdiction over school districts and do not control school districts. On the contrary, intermediate units exist to serve school districts and provide leadership which will improve local operations. Although intermediate units are an extension of the Pennsylvania Department of Education, they differ greatly from local school districts in several ways.