CHEROKEE, N.C. – This spring, the Cherokee Preservation Foundation awarded 12 spring grants to partners within western North Carolina and beyond. Grants totaled more than $3.1 million and were awarded to projects advancing the Foundation’s mission of improving the quality of life for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians (EBCI) and neighboring communities.
The 2024 spring grants were awarded to:
Jones Bowman Leadership Program – To continue supporting a Cherokee culturally based leadership development program for undergraduates with the goal of producing selfless leaders grounded with Cherokee core values – $153,000.
Ray Kinsland Leadership Institute –To house Cherokee culturally based leadership development programs with the goal of producing selfless leaders grounded with Cherokee core values – $384,500
The Museum of the Cherokee People – To support the strategic plan to ensure organizational sustainability – $385,000
EBCI Kituwah Preservation & Education Program – To support Cherokee language preservation through continued learning, adult immersion, archiving, creation of new words, books, curriculum development, teacher training, and community outreach – $374,050
Cherokee Central Schools – To improve the town of Cherokee’s workforce and economy by providing programs that support Entrepreneurship in Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math (ESTEAM) – $242,835
The Sequoyah Fund – To support small business development in the town of Cherokee via lending, capacity building and other programs – $743,411
EBCI Division of Commerce – To support the efforts of the EBCI Division of Commerce in increasing the economic development of the Qualla Boundary by diversifying food options – $20,000
Cherokee Historical Association – To support CHA’s efforts to increase cultural and heritage tourism in the town of Cherokee. – $702,000
Snowbird Cherokee Traditions – To support Cherokee second-language learners in the EBCI Snowbird community located in Graham County – $86,268
Mainspring Conservation Trust –To produce a paper guide of available resources for artisans seeking to gather materials on Mainspring properties – $17,860
ECBI Division of Commerce –To diversify economic development activities in the town of Cherokee by utilizing local partnerships to create, execute, and market annual events – $38,000
YMCA of Western North Carolina – To increase the availability of usable Cherokee artisan resources through targeted gardening – $5,310
- Cheroke Preservation Foundation release
