The University of Arkansas Libraries have been approved for a $25,000 grant through the Grants for Arts Projects, which will support Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts’ Community Scholars Program.
Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts is a statewide outreach program of the University Libraries. This project will provide free training across the state centered on equipping and empowering Arkansas communities to document, present and sustain their traditional culture and arts.
“We are so grateful for the NEA’s support of our growing Community Scholars Program in Arkansas,” said Virginia Siegel, coordinator for Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts. “We have an amazing group of Community Scholars alumni dedicated to documenting and sustaining Arkansas’ rich cultural heritage, and this funding helps us bring the program to new communities across Arkansas. Community Scholars participants are already the experts of their community traditions, and we hope this program will provide resources and tools for those who participate in the training.”
Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts’ Community Scholars Program is in its second year and is modeled after the Kentucky Arts Council’s longstanding and successful training of the same name. Previous training locations include Pocahontas, Fayetteville and Fox.
In the coming year, Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts will host trainings in Russellville and Batesville, in addition to one synchronous training online. Each training will include five sessions designed to introduce folklore and folk art, teach oral history and fieldwork skills and provide examples for how communities can archive or showcase their research.