North Dakota Council on the Arts (NDCA) Awards Nearly $60,000 in Arts in Education Collaboration Grants for Fiscal Year 2026
BISMARCK, N.D. – North Dakota Council on the Arts (NDCA) has awarded $59,982 through its Arts in Education Collaboration (AIEC) program for Fiscal Year 2026 (July 1, 2025, to June 30, 2026), supporting nine projects that expand access to high-quality arts education for K–12 students across the state.
Arts in Education Collaboration (AIEC) is a grant program that provides up to $6,000 to arts organizations, schools, school districts, nonprofit organizations, and government agencies to build collaborations and community partnerships in order to increase access to high quality, sustained arts education for K-12 students in North Dakota. Four of this year’s nine grantees are first-time recipients.
Funded projects include:
- Rugby High School: Integrating digital design tools into cross-curricular learning
- Elk Ridge Elementary (Bismarck): A school-wide, arts-integrated program emphasizing growth mindset and creativity
- DSU Heritage Foundation (Dickinson): A middle school theatre camp offering hands-on experience in performance and production
- James Memorial Preservation Society (Williston): Visual arts instruction for students lacking consistent access to art classes
- Jamestown Fine Arts Association: Outreach bringing arts education to rural schools in Stutsman County
- Pembina Gorge Foundation (Frost Fire Park): Day camps providing rural students with access to visual and performing arts
- Taube Museum of Art (Minot): “Gallery on Wheels” brings art experiences directly into classrooms
- Arts and Edventure Educational Tours (Hillsboro): A summer camp introducing rural youth to fine arts
- Northern Prairie Performing Arts (Fargo): Adaptive theatre classes for individuals of all abilities
AIEC grants are designed to build lasting arts education capacity. One example is Christ the King Montessori School (Mandan), which transitioned from grant-supported programming to hiring teaching artist Ali La Rock as a full-time faculty member—embedding arts education into the school’s daily curriculum.
For more information about NDCA’s Arts in Education Collaboration program—along with all other NDCA grant programs—please visit NDCA's Grants at a Glance page or call 701-328-7590.
###
North Dakota Council on the Arts is the state agency responsible for the support, development, and preservation of the arts throughout North Dakota and is funded by the state legislature and the National Endowment for the Arts.