Casey Kuhn/KJZZ

Huntington University's president hands Peoria Mayor Cathy Carlat a plaque commemorating their partnership.

Peoria city leaders Tuesday stood with Huntington University representatives celebrating the latest private college to choose the West Valley for a satellite campus.

The East Valley began attracting satellite campuses in the past, and following suit, Peoria looked to lure similar higher education institutions to their city.

Peoria Mayor Cathy Carlat hopes that by having more higher education options, the city can attract, and keep, young, skilled workers in an area that area.

“One of my big passions is making sure we keep millennials in our city," Carlat said. "And so that was one of the main reasons way back when we decided to go after universities, we needed to create our own skilled workforce.” 

Jeff Berggren, Arizona operations director for Huntington University, thinks the college's digital media program could appeal to local businesses looking for talent.

“I think (students) will locate here, but then businesses looking for those types of people will say, ‘Whoa, there’s a hotbed in Peoria cranking out graduates,' so we think it’ll be a business retention tool and business attractor,” Berggen said.

Huntington joins Trine University, another private, Indiana-based college, to settle a campus in Peoria.