The IBMA Foundation has awarded a total of $18,500 and two banjos for 13 Arnold Shultz Fund grants to programs and individuals in seven states plus China, India, and Uganda. The Arnold Shultz Fund was established in 2020 by the IBMA Foundation to encourage participation in bluegrass music by people of color who are underrepresented in bluegrass.
“We’re proud to announce a continuing pattern of strong support for Arnold Shultz Fund grants in 2026,” said Dr. Richard Brown, co-chair of the Arnold Shultz Fund advisory committee along with Neil Rosenberg, Ph.D. “The Shultz Fund committee has awarded over $103,000 in grants since the program began in 2020, plus an additional $30,000 for the Black Banjo Reclamation Project which came from proceeds from the annual Pisgah Banjo Company fundraising raffle.”
“The IBMA Foundation seeks to offer a proactive, helping hand to promote participation in bluegrass by underrepresented racial and ethnic groups around the world,” Brown said. “Bluegrass music belongs to everyone who wants to listen to it or play it. We are grateful to donors who continue to support the Arnold Shultz Fund and all the other Foundation initiatives. Their generosity has made it possible to award grants to these very deserving musicians and program organizers.”
2026 Arnold Shultz Fund grant recipients:
Baltimore Old-Time Music Festival, Support for artists who represent living lineages of Black and Afro-Caribbean musical traditions foundational to American roots music to participate in the festival. (Baltimore, Maryland)
The Banjo Gathering, Supporting Black Banjo and Bluegrass Scholarship, a targeted effort to bridge the gap between historical research and the contemporary reclamation movement. (Baltimore, Maryland)
The Black Banjo Reclamation Project, Reclamation Music Camp aims to reduce cost barriers for all participants. The Black Banjo Reclamation Project affinity group is the first of its kind and aims to bring access to Black musicians in pursuit of bluegrass. (Ukiah, California)
Bluegrass Pride, Camp Bluegrass Pride will offer scholarships for people of color from low-income families. Camp Scholarships will reduce or fully cover registration costs, making high-quality bluegrass instruction, mentorship, and community access financially attainable for students who might otherwise be unable to participate. (Astoria, Oregon)
Dancing with the Spirit will begin a summer music camp for the Native community of Yakutat in July, 2026. Instruments will be left with Yakutat students and plans are for a fall school music camp, online, and local lessons to keep the music going. (Yakutat, Alaska)
Miranda Dozier will provide free community group banjo lessons with the support of two of the IBMA Foundation’s Deering Goodtime Banjos. Lessons will continue throughout the year and into the future. (St. Louis, Missouri)
Souvik Hazra will participate in Berklee College of Music online degree program – Bachelor of Arts in Guitar Performance. (Kolkata, India)
Jam Pak Bluegrass, The Jam Pak Bluegrass Summer Camp supports the engagement of 18 diverse instructors and coaches, paired with over 50 participants. (Chandler, Arizona)
Fanyang Jiang, will build guitars to give to bluegrass university programs in China. (Shanghai, China)
Huang Ke, will create the first Chinese-language bluegrass guitar method book with an instructional video. (Tianjin, China)
The Louisville Folk School, The Sounds of Kentucky is an afterschool program for 4-5th graders in racially diverse neighborhoods, bringing in-depth, hands-on music education directly into local schools. (Louisville, Kentucky)
The Schwarzman Centre, Oxford University; Support for a Rhiannon Giddens fellowship including research articles and educational performances for students and the public, with links to published materials based on Rhiannon’s work to be shared with the IBMA Foundation. (Oxfordshire, UK)
Michael Stein, A grant to “Finger Grass from the Serengeti Meets Kentucky” will be used to support continued educational programs in Uganda that utilize bluegrass instruments in local music traditions—specifically, for rehearsals and group lessons with African musicians in person and online. (Kampala, Mbale District, Uganda)
IBMA Bluegrass Hall of Fame member Arnold Shultz (1886 – 1931) was an African American musician from western Kentucky. Best known as an extraordinary guitarist and fiddle player, Shultz often played with Bill Monroe’s fiddle-playing uncle, Pendleton (“Pen”) Vandiver. It was at these gigs that Monroe met Arnold Shultz and began to emulate his backup guitar style. Shultz was impressed enough with Monroe’s progress that he hired Monroe to play guitar with him at dances, thereby giving Monroe his first jobs as a professional musician. Monroe often credited Shultz with influencing his approach to playing music.
The deadline to apply for the next round of Arnold Shultz Fund grants is January 31, 2027. Qualified individual applicants may also inquire throughout the year about support on a case-by-case basis. For information on applying for an Arnold Shultz Fund grant, becoming a sponsor of an IBMA Foundation Arnold Shultz Fund project or individual grant, or making a donation to the Arnold Shultz Fund, please visit bluegrassfoundation.org or email info@bluegrassfoundation.org.
The IBMA Foundation supports programs and initiatives that foster the growth of bluegrass music. The Foundation helps donors create a bluegrass legacy through charitable donations and planned giving by supporting programs focused on bluegrass-related arts and culture, education, literary work, and historic preservation. Information about all grants and scholarships awarded by the IBMA Foundation may be found at https://bluegrassfoundation.org. For more information, please contact executive director Cassie Wright at (773) 383-2964 or info@bluegrassfoundation.org.
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