ECAT stands in a building that has long been central to its eastside neighborhood.
Once the historic Wayne School, it served generations of Erie children as a place to learn and grow. Hamot Health Foundation’s connection to the site began years earlier, with the creation of school-based health services, now known as Wayne Primary Care, to support students and families and address health disparities at their roots.
When Wayne School later closed, Hamot Health Foundation saw both the loss of an educational institution and the opportunity to reimagine its future – a community-centered hub where health, education, and opportunity could converge.
Inspired by Bill Strickland’s nationally recognized Manchester Bidwell model, ECAT was established to bring arts education, career training, and community connection together under one roof. Guided by the belief that when individuals are treated with dignity, surrounded by beauty, and given access to meaningful training, they can transform their own lives, ECAT opened its doors in 2021, continuing the building’s legacy of learning while expanding its impact to people of all ages. It has since become an anchor institution within the Wayne Equity District.
ECAT’s programs directly align with our vision for Career Development by creating pathways to stable employment and long-term community health and wellness.
- Through workforce training in high-demand health care and technical fields
- From Clinical Medical Assistants and Sterile Processing Technicians to Construction Trades — students gain practical skills, industry-recognized credentials, and renewed confidence in their future.
- ECAT’s teen arts programs nurture creativity, resilience, and self-expression, strengthening the social and emotional foundation that supports lifelong success, all at no cost to students.
The ECAT Wayne building also houses several essential partners:
- Including the UPMC Jameson School of Nursing,
- PHN Wayne Primary Care, and
- United Way of Erie County.
Campus expansion began in 2026 with the addition of the Wayne Park Baptist Church property, enabling larger class sizes, expanded nursing education, and increased on-site parking.
By uniting health, education, and career pathways, Erie Center for Arts & Technology helps individuals build self-sufficiency, strengthens families, and contributes to a more vibrant, equitable future for Erie.