Intermediate Unit 8 was created to furnish a broad range of educational services to the 35 public school districts, five area vocational-technical schools, two charter schools and approximately 81 non-public schools in Bedford, Blair, Cambria, and Somerset counties in west, central and southwestern Pennsylvania—serving approximately 65,000 students in an area covering 3,500 square miles. IU8 provides programs for curriculum development and the improvement of instructional materials; it also offers educational management and pupil personnel services and serves as a liaison between school districts and state and federal education agencies.