Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts Accepting Apprenticeship Applications

Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts will offer its Fall 2026 Community Scholars training online in partnership with the Tennessee Folklore Society. The six-session program will run every other week from Sept. 10 through Nov. 5 and will teach participants how to document, research and present community culture, folklife and traditional arts. 

The Community Scholars program is a free training opportunity for Arkansans and others interested in learning about community culture and traditional arts. Registration is required, and participants must commit to attending the full training series.

The fall program is a special collaboration with the Tennessee Folklore Society. Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts typically partners with organizations in Arkansas to offer Community Scholars training, but its fall online programs in recent years have included collaborations with neighboring states.

During the training, participants will develop ideas for a project that allows them to practice the skills they learn. Topics will include documenting and researching culture, archiving and presenting research, and developing projects in collaboration with community stakeholders and organizations.

“The Community Scholars Program sessions were enjoyable and informative to me in my role at the museum, especially the discussions on exhibit labels, oral interviewing techniques and digital content,” said Mary Clark, a Spring 2022 Community Scholars Program alumna and board member of the Eddie Mae Herron Center in Pocahontas. “The instructors were extremely knowledgeable, enthusiastic and fun.”

The Fall 2026 program will be the 16th iteration of the Community Scholars training series and the fourth collaboration with a neighboring state, said Virginia Siegel, director of Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts.

“It’s always a pleasure to be able to bring this program to new communities throughout Arkansas and now Tennessee,” Siegel said. “Our fall online program has been in collaboration with neighboring states for the last several years because we recognize and honor that traditions and communities are often not bound by state lines.”

The Community Scholars program has expanded its reach through these collaborations while continuing to build a network of alumni across Arkansas, Siegel said.

The training is free and open to the public. Registration and additional information are available through the Fall 2026 Community Scholars Training registration page.

For more information, visit Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts or contact Lauren Willette at willette@uark.edu or 479-575-4664.

Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts is a statewide program of the University of Arkansas Libraries dedicated to documenting, presenting and sustaining Arkansas’ living traditional arts and folklife.

About Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts: Arkansas Folk and Traditional Arts (AFTA) is a department of University of Arkansas Libraries Special Collections Division serving the land grant mission of the University of Arkansas. AFTA is dedicated to documenting, presenting, and sustaining Arkansas’ living traditional arts and folklife.

About the University Libraries: Located in the heart of campus, the David W. Mullins Library is the university’s main research library. Branch libraries include the Chemistry and Biochemistry Library, the Fine Arts Library, the Physics Library, and the Robert A. and Vivian Young Law Library. The Libraries provide access to more than 3.1 million volumes and more than 180,000 journals and offer research assistance, study spaces, computer labs with printing and scanning, interlibrary loan and delivery services, and cultural exhibits and events. The Libraries’ Special Collections division acquires, preserves, and provides access to materials on Arkansas and the region, its customs and people, and its cultural, physical, and political climate. Visit the Libraries’ website at libraries.uark.edu to learn more about services and collections.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas’ economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the few U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.