The pacific northwest and hawaiian island arts program promotes the scholarly study of, and instruction in, alaska native and native hawaiian arts and culture

This $1,285,040 federal Project Grant award, funded by the Department of the Interior's National Park Service and awarded under the Pacific Northwest and Hawaiian Islands Arts program (CFDA 15.071), supports a wide range of initiatives and programs to preserve and promote Alaska Native culture and arts development. The grant recipient, Sealaska Heritage Institute, Inc., will use the funding to establish degree programs, cultural centers, and other activities focused on scholarly study, instruction, and preservation of Alaska Native arts and culture. Key initiatives include artist residencies, art classes and workshops, a sustainable arts program, performing arts program, and an Alaska Native research, exhibition, and publication program. These comprehensive efforts aim to directly benefit Alaska Native students, artists, and communities through hands-on engagement with traditional practices like dugout canoe construction, totem pole carving, and developing indigenous arts curricula. The grant award period runs from October 1, 2024 to April 30, 2029.

Participants will establish programs which culminate in the awarding of degrees in the various fields of alaska native and native hawaiian art and culture or to establish centers and programs with respect to alaska native or native hawaiian art and culture. This agreement involves a wide range of initiatives, activities, and programs to support alaska native culture and arts development, including higher education and learning resource programs and partnership programs. The higher education and learning resource programs encompass a native artist committee, artist residencies, art classes and workshops (in-person and virtual), a sustainable arts program, performing arts program, and an alaska native research, exhibition, and publication program. Beneficiaries include state and local governments, federally recognized indian tribal governments, nonprofit organizations, educational or scientific institutions, associations, individuals.