Pennsylvania council on the arts (PCA) now pennsylvania creative industries (PCI)

In April 2025, Pennsylvania Creative Industries’ governing council adopted a new strategic plan with the mission to empower, connect, and amplify creatives and creative industries and their contributions to Pennsylvania’s communities, economy, and workforce.

To support this new mission, Pennsylvania Creative Industries will invest its resources in five key areas:

To maximize resources and impact and ensure alignment with these key areas, Pennsylvania Creative Industries will be sunsetting their regional partnership programs: Arts in Education Partnership, Folk & Traditional Arts Partnership, and PA Partners in the Arts.

This will discontinue the following programs, beginning with Fiscal Year 2026-2027:

• Arts in Education teaching artist residencies

• Creative Sector Flex Fund (CSFF) grants

• Folk and Traditional Arts apprenticeship grants

Message from executive director susannah faulkner

Our creative ecosystem is facing a significant transition. As many of you have heard, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts (PCA) has reorganized as Pennsylvania’s Creative Industries (PCI). Their new statewide strategic framework shifts the agency’s focus to creative industries, workforce development, community development, visibility, and policy. As part of this transition, PCI is ending the regional partnership model that has been in place since 1997 to ensure that all 67 counties had equitable access to arts programs.

For nearly thirty years, the partnership model guaranteed that children, families, artists, makers, and culture bearers across the Commonwealth were not overlooked because of geography or population size. Erie Arts & Culture has been proud to serve as the only state partner agency for all three programs in our six-county region: Creative Entrepreneurship, Folk and Traditional Arts, and Arts in Education.

With PCI’s restructuring, the Arts in Education teaching artist roster and residencies, the Folk and Traditional Arts apprenticeship program, and Creative Sector Flex Fund grant will be discontinued statewide at the end of their current contract periods. Additional organizational grant changes are planned too. These cuts are significant - losing over $300,000 for our organization alone. They remove programs that have elevated cultural heritage, supported working artists, and provided thousands of students with meaningful arts learning experiences.

While these changes present real challenges, our commitment remains unchanged. Erie Arts & Culture will continue to provide these three program areas to our six counties with the same purpose, consistency, and care that has guided our work for decades. We are grateful to have non-PCA funding and support through Erie Insurance, Erie County Gaming Revenue Authority, private foundations, and donors like you to ensure that we can pivot with grace.

This moment calls us to lead with clarity and resolve. Our region deserves access to the full breadth of the arts: programs that honor tradition, nurture creativity, support teaching and working artists, and expand opportunity for young people. A creative region is a resilient region, and we cannot allow these programs to disappear without response.

Northwestern Pennsylvania has long been a place where creativity is tied to our shared quality of life. Murals brighten our neighborhoods. Performances open doors for young people. Artists preserve the stories that define us. Makers build new business pathways. Culture bearers anchor our communities’ vital yet age-old tradition. The value of this work is measurable, visible, and deeply felt.

We have hard work ahead. Over the coming months, we will share more details as PCI releases formal guidance. We know this moment is difficult, but we also know our region’s strength. Erie Arts & Culture has seen firsthand what happens when creativity is nurtured and supported. We intend to carry these programs forward, explore new partnerships, and advocate for resources that keep the arts accessible to everyone in Northwestern Pennsylvania.

Thank you for your leadership, your partnership, and your unwavering belief in what the arts make possible. We will stand strong together. In times of uncertainty, creativity lights the way.