The IBMA Foundation has announced the recipients of their 2026 project grants, with awards totally $20,000 to 11 bluegrass programs in eight US states and Canada. They especially thankful for the Bill Breen Bluegrass Youth Education Fund, which supports one third of these awards.
Foundation Board Chair and President, Trisha Tubbs, also thanks those whose continued contributions keep these grants going.
“An impressive list of recipients for 2026 will support bluegrass education for both young people and adults. We are grateful to donors who continue to support the Foundation.
Project grants are the flagship program of the IBMA Foundation, dating back to 2011. We’re especially pleased to help fund important work across the US and beyond with these annual grants that make an enormous difference in lives and communities.”
Here are the 2026 recipients, along with a brief description provided by the Foundation.
June Bug Center for Arts & Education (Floyd, VA) – The Floyd JAMS after school program is held once per week for students ages 8 – 18 at the June Bug Center on Monday afternoons from 3:30-5:30 p.m. Students can choose to learn fiddle, guitar, mandolin, clawhammer banjo, bluegrass banjo, dance, string band, and singing from talented local instructors. Instruments are supplied free of charge to students.
Montgomery Museum of Art & History (Christiansburg, VA) – The Montgomery County JAM affiliate will serve students ages 8-14 for 14 weeks of bluegrass instrument instruction and cultural enrichment for the spring 2026 term.
The Tellico Plains Junior Appalachian Musicians (Tellico Plains, TN) affiliate serves children age 5-12 in three communities located in Monroe County. Instruction in traditional bluegrass, old-time music, and dance is included, along with jamming and performance opportunities.
The String Band Summit (Johnson City, TN) – Since 2017, the East Tennessee State University Institute for Appalachian Music and Culture has hosted a String Summit. This year’s version will include a keynote session with an academic/social science analytical twist, youth engagement activities carried with local and regional JAM groups, and a public community dance.
The Shaniko Music Sanctuary Frontier Bluegrass Festival Workshop Series (Shaniko, OR) is a bluegrass education initiative to be delivered across four rural Oregon festivals. Beginner workshops, intergenerational jams, and introductory skill-building sessions will be provided, facilitated by local musicians. They project 60-80 participants at the four festivals.
The Georgia Pick & Bow Traditional Music School (Dahlonega, GA) preserves and promotes traditional regional music with 10 weeks of after school bluegrass and old-time instruction and jamming for young students, two family jams a year, two recitals, a five-day summer camp with a showcase, and occasional after-school jams. Students on reduced or free meal programs at school are offered assistance with tuition. The program serves about 135 students a year.
The purpose of the Ashe County Arts Council Heritage Dance Series (West Jefferson, NC) is to preserve and revitalize traditional social dance. Bluegrass and old-time musicians play for the dancers, and local Junior Appalachian Musician students will provide the music for the program in 2026.
Bluegrass at the Granite hosted by The Granite, Inc. (Georgetown, CT) hosts monthly bluegrass nights plus youth music education. A new series at the nonprofit arts venue has been developed for 2026 that will include coached and uncoached jams, workshops, and professional band performances. The program’s goal is to preserve and promote bluegrass in Connecticut and southeast New York area.
The Monroe Mandolin Camp’s (Mt. Juliet, TN) work is focused on the preservation and advancement of the living legacy of Bill Monroe & His Blue Grass Boys, and of traditional bluegrass music. The camp approaches this heritage as a living language— actively taught, shared, and passed from generation to generation through hands-on learning and storytelling at annual camps and year-round workshops that connect musicians with history, folklore, and community.
The Ashokan Center’s 2026 Bluegrass Camp (Olivebridge, NY), a nonprofit cultural center dedicated to folk arts, music, and outdoor education on a 385-acre historic nature preserve in the Catskill Mountains, will host its 2026 Bluegrass Camp, providing week-long, hands-on instruction for musicians of all ages and levels. Hosted this year by Kimber Ludiker, the program includes music instruction, songwriting, jams, concerts, mini-lessons, open mics, and more.
Prince Edward Island Bluegrass & Old-Time Music Society’s PEI Winter Bluegrass Festival (Prince Edward Island, Canada) will host a session featuring two pioneering women in bluegrass music: Barbara Martin Stephens and Betty Harford. The women led their own successful careers in the music industry and were driving forces in their husband’s careers (Jimmy Martin and John Hartford). Barbara and Betty worked in booking, management, promotion, performance, and more. They will be featured at a Fireside Chat hosted by the Sunny Mountain Gals, a regional all-female bluegrass trio.
Information about applying for a 2027 project grant is available online, as are details about how you can add your donation to the ongoing efforts of the IBMA Foundation.
