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North Dakota Council on the Arts (NDCA) has awarded $137,440.00 in grants through its Folk and Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program for Fiscal Year 2027, which runs from July 1, 2026, to June 30, 2027. This year's funding supports 37 projects involving 91 different artists in 32 cities, including 19 towns with fewer than 1,500 residents, helping keep cultural traditions alive across the state.
By providing funds of up to $4,500, the program allows master traditional artists to pass their skills and knowledge to apprentices on a one-to-one basis over an extended period. While masters may live outside North Dakota, all apprentices are North Dakota residents, ensuring these traditions continue to grow within the state.
This year's apprenticeships showcase an extraordinary range of cultural heritage, from Norwegian Hardanger fiddle, rosemaling, woodcarving, weaving, and folk instruments to blacksmithing, bladesmithing, saddle and cowboy hat making, Native American rawhide and parfleche work, quilt making and moccasin making. The program also supports the transmission of diverse musical, dance, and storytelling traditions, including Bluegrass, Lakota, Ojibwe, West African, Nepali, Chinese, Mexican, Ukrainian and South Indian art forms.
Grant awards may be used for a master artist’s instruction fee, supplies and travel costs for the apprentice. Apprenticeships generally last between four and ten months, depending on the project plan.
Area recipients are:
- Os, Vadres and Rogaland rosemaling, master Joan Varty of Minot, and apprentices Sannon Reimer, Molly McLain and Kayla Schmidt, all Bismarck, $3,451.
- Mexican traditional dance, master Marina Carrillo Prieto of Williston, apprentices Misael, Fernanda, Victoria and Santiago Diaz of Williston, $3,500.
- Ojibwe beaded puckered moccasin making, master Bradley Defender of Dunseith, apprentices Tanya, Kiara and Taveshia Peltier and Julie Trim of Belcourt, San Haven and Dunseith, $3,846.
- Traditional fiber arts processing and felting, master Christi Armbrust of Nome, apprentice Ashley Echevarria of Alexander, $3,500.
- Ukrainian Pysanky, master Joann Defoe of Watford City, apprentices Oksana Zvyagelskiy of Watford City, $2,000.
- Cowboy hat making, master Jack Scholl of Belle Fourche, South Dakota, apprentice Brianna Kramer of Makoti, $4,500.
- Piano accordion, master Gerald Schlag of Minot, apprentice Clara Zheng of Minot, $2,985.
- Norwegian hardanger fiddle building, master Robert Larsen of Brainerd, Minnesota, apprentices Riley and Peyton Easling of Stanley, $4,052.