Just weeks into the Trump administration, officials in Washington are already targeting deep cuts to the critical organizations and programs that millions of New Yorkers rely on for educational and cultural opportunities. As the federal government retreats, state and city leaders must act — not just to fill the gaps, but to strengthen New York City’s fragile arts and culture ecosystem, which is already at risk and in desperate need of greater investment from our leaders.
The arts are integral to New York City. The hugely important arts education community — the public school art teachers and their school communities, teaching artists, local cultural programs, world-renowned cultural institutions, and the everyday workforce that keeps it all running — serves nearly one million public school students and provides them with unparalleled opportunities essential to their health and success.
Every year, thousands of students find their talents, and themselves, thanks to the arts opportunities offered in their public schools. The past few years have only underscored the need for spaces where young people can process their experiences, think critically, and build resilience. And for many students, access to public education is their only opportunity to pursue music, dance, visual arts, film, theater, or any other creative expression foundational to their future success. Arts education provides precisely that space.
But now those same opportunities are under threat. In recent weeks, the Trump administration has vowed to dismantle the Department of Education, cut funding for the National Endowment of the Arts, and end support for hundreds of nonprofit organizations working to advance arts access.
The combined impact of these changes is alarming. These institutions are critical to ensuring every New Yorker, no matter their income, background, or experience, can access the arts. Many of the same nonprofits now at risk comprise the majority of the 700+ organizations that partner with NYC schools to bridge the gap for all students. And while the full slate of cuts is likely to grow still, the federal action is already causing confusion and fear of budget shortfalls that, as we saw during the pandemic, often leads to less funding for arts, culture, and other “nonessential” programs.
Some might argue that New York City cannot afford to supplement every cut from the federal government. But failing to support New York City’s arts ecosystem at such a critical time will have cascading effects that hurt our economy, threaten the livelihoods of thousands of New Yorkers, and hurt the people who need the arts most: our youngest New Yorkers.
New York City’s arts education opportunities are historically inequitable, and an unprecedented loss of arts teachers in our public schools threatens to widen the arts education access gap for the very students who rely on public support most.
Since the pandemic, New York’s public schools have lost an unprecedented number of arts teachers. Between 2020 and 2023, public schools across the five boroughs lost 425 full-time certified arts teachers — leaving nearly 1 in 5 of the city’s public schools without a single dedicated arts teacher, and thousands more students without sufficient access to the arts.
That lack of access is directly affecting students’ outcomes. According to the city’s most recent Arts in Schools Report, just 29% of eighth-grade students meet the New York State Education Department’s requirements and guidelines for arts education — a figure largely unchanged since 2015.
Because of the city’s lack of reporting requirements, we don’t know which schools are most impacted — but it’s likely concentrated among the city’s underserved communities, who disproportionately lack the funding and subsequent access to sufficient arts education.
For those thousands of students, every dollar — regardless of if it comes from the federal, state, or local level — helps to level the playing field and provide critical
educational experiences that would otherwise remain inaccessible.
Thankfully, the Mayor and City Council have shown a willingness to safeguard culture and arts education before — saving millions in expiring pandemic aid and supporting cultural institutions that are bridging the gap for students across all income levels. But they must act now.
Federal disinvestment now once again threatens to limit every New Yorkers’ access to the arts and culture — and widen the access gap for the students that need it most. The Mayor and Council should recognize the critical importance of the arts to New York City, and ensure more students — not less — are able to access them.
Kimberly Olsen is the Executive Director of the NYC Arts in Education Roundtable.
