Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology News

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $80 million in grants as part of the NEA’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2018, including an Art Works grant of $20,000 to the Kentucky Folklife Program at WKU to support the establishment of a Kentucky Folklife Network and online magazine. 

The Art Works category is the NEA’s largest funding category and supports projects that focus on the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and/or the strengthening of communities through the arts.

“The variety and quality of these projects speaks to the wealth of creativity and diversity in our country,” Chu said. “Through the work of organizations such as the Kentucky Folklife Program in Bowling Green, NEA funding invests in local communities, helping people celebrate the arts wherever they are.” 

“We are grateful to the NEA for their continuing belief in our mission to document, present, and conserve the traditional arts and cultural heritage of our region,” said Brent Björkman, Director of the Kentucky Folklife Program. “This Kentucky Folklife Network project will allow us to further reach out and bring to a world-wide audience via the web the rich local cultural expressions being documented by passionate community scholars living throughout the Commonwealth.”

The Kentucky Folklife Network and magazine is an ongoing initiative of the Kentucky Folklife Program, part of the Department of Folk Studies and Anthropology at WKU, that aims to connect folklorists and folk arts organizations across the state. The work of the Kentucky Folklife Network will be showcased in an online magazine hosted by the Kentucky Folklife Program that will welcome contributions from Network members, folklorists, students, community scholars and community partners throughout Kentucky. The Network will kick off in the Spring of 2020 with a Kentucky Folklife Network gathering on WKU’s campus where participants can come together and discuss their work and generate connections, avenues of support, and potential partnerships.

For information on the Kentucky Folklife Network, contact the Kentucky Folklife Program at kyfolklife@wku.edu.

For information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

Contact: Virginia Siegel, (270) 745-4133