Apprentice Merritt Johnson working on a Kaagwaantaan totem pole commissioned by SHI in 2022 that was carved by master artist Nicholas Galanin in Sitka, Alaska/Bethany Goodrich, courtesy of Sealaska Heritage Institute

The National Park Service has provided $1.5 million for arts education and mentorship projects as part of the Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development grant program.  

The Alaska Native Heritage Center was awarded $750,000 to provide free classes to the public taught by master artists from the Alaska Native community. The project will increase the number of individuals who are practicing traditional artforms within the Alaska Native community and deepen these individuals’ understandings of traditional Alaska Native arts. 

Sealaska Heritage Institute received $749,282 to connect young Alaska Native adults to new community-based instructional opportunities in Northwest Coast Arts using the Mentor-Apprentice pedagogy. The project will grow the next generation of Southeast Alaska Native master carvers and align with the institute’s Core Cultural Values.  

The Park Service administers the Native Hawaiian and Alaska Native Culture and Arts Development grant program on behalf of the Interior secretary using funds appropriated by Congress. Grants may be awarded for the scholarly study of and instruction in Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian traditional and contemporary arts and culture, to establish centers and educational programs that lead to degrees in Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian art and culture programs and establish programs that develop traditional and contemporary arts in the community.  

Any private, nonprofit organization or institution that primarily serves and represents the Native Hawaiian or Alaska Native communities and is recognized by the governor of Hawaii or the governor of Alaska, as appropriate, is eligible to receive such grants. 
 
The next application period will open no later than early June 2024.  Interested parties who are registered in Grants.gov can subscribe to saved searches to receive email notifications when this grant opportunity becomes available. Search by Assistance Listing (formerly CFDA) number: 15.071 (Pacific Northwest and Hawaiian Islands Arts).