The days when The Presser Foundation hosts its Next Movement Idea Forum are some of my favorites. Getting to meet, plan, and curate an event with others – whether they be music organizations that the Foundation supports, companies that can provide services or assistance to nonprofits, or regional, membership organizations that conduct research and share data relevant to our work – is always a highlight of mine. I learn something new from every Next Movement and appreciate the opportunity to connect with others in the field.
The recent Next Movement with the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance (GPCA) and PA Humanities focused on their joint research report, PA CultureCheck. The report offers a great deal to learn, and Kristen Vinh of GPCA and Nicholas Crosson of PA Humanities, the report’s researchers, provided highlights and additional insights to attendees.
The report tracks the post-pandemic recovery and community engagement efforts of cultural, arts, and humanities organizations in 2023. The study surveys nonprofits across the state, with data that specifically spotlights the Greater Philadelphia region. In addition to the survey, GPCA and PA Humanities also conducted listening sessions with organizations to better understand the context for the data gleaned.
Without diving too deep into the findings (check out the report or watch the recording!), performing arts organizations (of which music organizations are often categorized; there are a few that self-identified as community and education organizations) continue to face post-pandemic recovery challenges related to attendance, hiring staff, and recruiting volunteers (including board members). While facing those challenges, respondents shared that it’s important to move forward and set new benchmarks while needing time, space, and capital to innovate to meet current realities and plan.
What I also noted was the emphasis on partnerships and collaboration. The survey findings showed that 95% of organizations partner with other community organizations, especially schools. We see that frequently at The Presser Foundation – whether it’s a music educating organization partnering with community organizations or it’s a music performing or presenting organization that has one or more educational programs, collaborations are vital. Arts and culture organizations are not isolated; they are deeply connected to the community, providing essential services and uplifting diverse voices. They are also having a fundamental economic impact – an aspect explored by the Arts, Culture & Economic Prosperity: Greater Philadelphia report conducted by GPCA.
Together, these data points are essential for advocating for the arts, as PA Humanities pointed out, to craft more informed advocacy and policy recommendations, identify funding gaps and critical assets, develop actionable insights to inform data-driven initiatives, amplify collective voices, and increase collaboration and learning opportunities. Whether it’s fundraising for a specific organization or sharing with local, state, or national representatives why the arts matter, PA CultureCheck, and other reports demonstrate how and why the arts contribute to the community and society.
We’re grateful to both PA Humanities and the Greater Philadelphia Cultural Alliance for conducting this research and sharing it with the Foundation and its grantees! Research informs practice, and using this information strengthens the music community and the communities in which music organizations operate.
