NWT Arts Council calls for arts institute in the North

The NWT Arts Council is calling for an arts school in the territory. 

This week, the council released its strategic plan, which includes five ideas it hopes to implement over the next five years. 

Establishing an arts school is just one of those goals. Others include making the council the one-stop shop for funding applications for artists. In a survey last year, artists said they're often confused about where they're supposed to go to apply for various funding. 

Ben Nind, co-chair of the council, says these goals are all part of the council's new vision for artists in the territory.

He says a school is just the beginning, and is something that's strongly needed in the North, so artists don't have to go south for training in music, dance and theatre. 

"There's a lot of those traditions that are being passed from elder to a mid-life career individual, who is looking to get better, and to those children and emerging artists that are really the future of arts and culture for the whole Northwest Territories," Nind said. "But there's no place really in terms of an institution to be able to do that."  

Nind says he's shared the idea with Aurora College in Yellowknife and hopes that school will take on the new program. 

The council plans to implement all five goals by 2018.