Arnold Shultz Fund Grant

The Arnold Shultz Fund, established by the IBMA Foundation, aims to enhance diversity in bluegrass music by providing $30,000 annually in grants. This initiative supports individuals, schools, and organizations dedicated to inclusivity, particularly among underrepresented racial and ethnic groups. The fund honors Arnold Shultz, a pivotal African American musician who mentored Bill Monroe, and continues his legacy by funding educational opportunities for young musicians and promoting bluegrass music in diverse communities.

Our project grants, which now total over $26,000 a year, support bluegrass-related initiatives throughout the world. We also fund Bluegrass in the Schools Mini-grants ($7,000/year) which help schools to hire bluegrass bands for school programs. The Rosenberg Bluegrass Scholar Award recognizes excellence in academic research. Six college scholarships are granted for students working in various areas of the bluegrass music industry. The Arnold Shultz Fund supports increased participation of people of color in bluegrass music with grants that total $30,000/ year. Fletcher Bright Memorial Grants for Young Musicians (age 18 and younger) help young people go to bluegrass music camps and workshops, take lessons, and purchase educational materials.
Arnold Shultz (1886 – 1931) was an African American musician from western Kentucky. Shultz, best known as an extraordinary guitarist and fiddle player, often played guitar with Bill Monroe’s fiddle-playing uncle, Pendleton (“Pen”) Vandiver. It was at these gigs that Monroe met Arnold Shultz and began to emulate Shultz’s 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 professional music jobs. Arnold Shultz was a mentor to Bill Monroe, who also credited Shultz with influencing his approach to playing music in multiple ways.
People of color are people with racial/ethnic backgrounds that are underrepresented in bluegrass: Black, Asian, Hispanic/Latino, Indigenous First People, Indigenous Pacific Islander, etc.