About SJCA

“At first, the South Jersey cultural community was all working hard—but working apart.”

Across South Jersey, there has always been a powerful creative force at work—artists, cultural organizations, historians, festivals, and community leaders all doing their part to shape local arts & culture. But for many years, they were doing it alone. Siloed. Disconnected. Opportunities were left untapped, communities went unseen, and cultural treasures stayed hidden. Without a common voice or shared hub to connect, these cultural assets often found themselves competing for attention and resources rather than amplifying and building one another up.

That’s when, almost 35 years ago, SJCA stepped in—to ask a different question...

What if we could change that by working together?

SJCA's stepped in—not to take over, but to connect.

South Jersey Cultural Alliance (SJCA) didn’t set out to be just another arts service organization—it became a weaver of threads. With a bold vision to connect, inform, and empower a diverse network of cultural practitioners, SJCA set out to build something bigger: a collaborative, inclusive cultural ecosystem spanning all eight counties—from Camden to Cape May.

The work wasn’t always glamorous. It started with listening—hosting messy conversations, mapping forgotten assets, translating sector-wide data into stories that mattered locally. It meant designing a Cultural Asset Map that wasn’t just a list, but a living resource.. It meant showing up in all of South Jersey’s eight counties, even the underrepresented places to build trust, not just programs.

And it meant saying: You’re not alone. SJCA sees you. We are in this together.

Our network is not just a map. It’s a movement.

Today, SJCA’s Cultural Asset Map and mobile Culture Trail app spotlight over 1,000 cultural assets across eight counties. Artists and organizations aren't just visible—they're discoverable. SJCA members also collaborate through shared learning opportunities and cooperative marketing campaigns, amplifying one another’s events and shaping regional narratives together.

What started as an idea now drives tangible outcomes:

• Artists access professional development and advocacy they never had before, leading to more opportunities.
  
• Organizations co-create programs and get their voices heard in statewide policy tables.
  
• Communities experience arts in their neighborhoods—in parks, libraries, and historic sites.
• Educators use the map to teach students that art, history, and culture live all around them.
  
• Funders see a coordinated cultural region that values the arts, not scattered grantees.
  
  

The SJCA network has become a cultural mycelium: rooted, resilient, and relational.

“The work behind the work” is what makes the difference.

Behind every successful campaign, every new partnership, every policy win—there’s the invisible labor of trust-building. The patient stitching of relationships. The invisible hours spent connecting an artist in Vineland with a historian in Woodbury, or introducing a festival in Tuckerton to a cultural tourism initiative in Atlantic County.

That’s what networks do. They connect the dots until a new picture emerges.

A call to the field: Let’s keep building this together.

We’re not done. SJCA is still evolving its membership model. Still gathering and telling data-rich stories. Still expanding who’s at the table. Still advocating to ensure South Jersey is seen, heard, and funded—equally.

We invite you—whether you’re a maker, a dreamer, a funder, or a neighbor—to join us. To be part of a network that doesn’t just support arts and history—it lives them.

✨ We’re weaving a tapestry. ✨

Every artist, cultural organization, historic site, and supporter is a thread—alone and fragile. But together, they form a vibrant, resilient cultural fabric that envelops South Jersey in pride, cultural identity, and broad access to the arts for every resident and visitor.


View SJCA"s 2024-2027 Strategic Plan here.