Artists in Schools Grants

The Artists in Schools grant program is supported by the State of Alaska and the National Endowment for the Arts with additional funding from Rasmuson Foundation, and is intended to support residencies of two weeks or more in Alaska schools. Artists in Schools (AIS) residencies should provide arts experiences and training for students, teachers, and the greater community. Successful applicants will demonstrate how a residency will augment the arts curriculum and the Alaska State Arts Standards, connect to other core curricula, include a professional development opportunity for teachers in integrating the residency discipline into future teaching, and create engagement between the school and community.

Eligibility: Individual public or private nonprofit Schools, School Districts, and nonprofit, tax-exempt Local Arts Partners—in partnership with schools and school districts—are eligible to apply. This includes PTO/PTA chapter groups, tribal nonprofits and tribes, where these organizations have an interest in school arts partnerships. If a nonprofit, parent group, or tribe is the applicant, they must provide a letter on district/school letterhead from the school partner, describing how the plan augments and supports the district-approved arts curriculum and/or state arts standards, and how the district/school is working with the organization on the residency development.

Artists in Schools grant applicants are strongly encouraged to work with teaching artists from the Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster (STAR). Technical assistance in the form of artist contract templates and procedure guidelines are available from the Alaska State Council on the Arts. The Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster (STAR) is provided as a guide to contacting a teaching artist(s) in planning for an AIS residency project.

Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster (STAR): PDF

We are continuing to update the STAR. Please let us know at laura.forbes@alaska.gov, if you find that you are unable to contact one of the artists on this list, so we can follow-up with that artist. Thank you for your assistance. 

For technical assistance, and access to additional materials, contact the program administrator, Laura Forbes, at (907) 269-6682 or laura.forbes@alaska.gov. Note: if you have not applied for an AIS grant in the past, you must contact the program administrator prior to submitting an application.

For complete Artists in Schools grant information, guidelines and application, visit the online grant system. Alaska teaching artists interested in joining the Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster, please see below.

Statewide Teaching Artist Roster (STAR)

The Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster is a juried list of artists who have expressed an interest in teaching in the schools, and who demonstrate the skills necessary to work as a teaching artist in a variety of educational settings. The overarching goal of the STAR is to serve as a resource to communities looking to support teaching and learning in and through the arts and cultures for Alaska’s children and youth, through connections to teaching artists.

Since the origination of the AIS program, ASCA has partnered with schools, communities, and organization to expand arts education grant offerings. These include support for short term arts experiences, arts excursions, community-based arts programs outside the regular school day/year, youth cultural heritage programs, and more. As ASCA arts education grant offerings expand, the STAR has become a resource for connecting schools, organizations, and communities with teaching artists in the implementation of arts education activity, beyond the AIS program.

Alaska teaching artists are encouraged to review the Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster—program information + application guidelines document, below and consider whether you wish to submit an application to join the STAR. Applications are accepted at any time of year, and are reviewed in the spring and winter, annually, by a panel of Alaskans; new STAR artists are added to the roster following panel review recommendations and final consideration of the Alaska State Council on the Arts Trustees.

Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster — Program Information + Application Guidelines for download: PDF

Alaska Statewide Teaching Artist Roster Application for download: Microsoft Word | PDF