The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) are thrilled to announce an exciting opportunity: Nominate yourself or someone else to have artistic work included in a resource to support learning about Native arts and cultural production in schools across Minnesota. Please see the Nominations for Minnesota Native Arts Resource Overview for more information. By “artistic work,” they mean the product that is the result of artistic and/or cultural activity, such as a painting, regalia, song, play, dance, or video. The deadline to submit nominations is August 8.
The Minnesota Department of Education (MDE) is developing a resource to support arts standards-based learning, which includes “the contributions of Minnesota American Indian tribes and communities” (Minnesota Statutes 2021, section 120B.021, subdivision. 4). A steering committee of Native arts and education leaders provides guidance for this project. This arts resource will be used in K-12 schools across Minnesota. Its purpose is to support visual and performing arts teachers to develop curriculum that authentically and appropriately integrates Dakota and Ojibwe arts for students across the state.
Any American Indian person with connection to Minnesota can be nominated. MDE especially encourages nominations of members of Tribal Nations located in Minnesota and artists/makers who fall under the artisan description within the Indian Arts and Crafts Act of 1990. Because this resource will focus on “Minnesota American Indian tribes and communities,” one goal is to include artistic work from every Tribal Nation located in Minnesota.
One aim of this resource is to highlight artistic works that are valuable and worth learning about from Native tribes’ and communities’ perspectives. Therefore, we will include artistic work by people who are respected within a community for their artistic or creative cultural activity, even if they are not well-known outside of their Native community.
See the Nominations for Minnesota Native Arts Resource Overview for additional details, including:
· The content of this resource
· What is “artistic work”
· Who can be nominated
· Rights, payment, and timeline
· Nomination form content
Please do not hesitate to reach out with questions or for more information. You can also visit both MDE’s Arts page and American Indian Education Teaching and Learning page. Please also share this with anyone that you think might be interested and help spread the word.
Contact: Alina Campana (she/her)
Arts Specialist | Academic Standards, Instruction, and Assessment
651-582-8706 | alina.campana@state.mn.us
Minnesota Department of Education
400 NE Stinson Blvd., Minneapolis, MN 55413
