2025 Community Update

In its first year, the Welcome Center drew a wave of new visitors to campus while helping North House to expand coursework, support craftspeople through record-breaking consignment sales, and provide the flexibility to grow our community programs and evolve our events. The building’s elevator, new automatic doors, and wayfinding signage are improving connection to the lake level campus for visitors of all ages! 

Friends and Neighbors

We continue to expand our community programs and opportunities for local residents. In winter/spring 2025, our First Fridays program welcomed Cook County residents to free, monthly gatherings on campus, connecting community members through board games, dancing, and a pizza feed. We look forward to kicking off the First Fridays again with a game night on January 2nd!

A 25% tuition discount for Cook County residents continues to be available for community members to request through a phone call to the front office. North House’s scholarship program is also available for local residents of Cook County and Grand Portage while supporting our additional goals to increase the diversity of age and race in the student body, support the learning of those with professional aspirations in a particular craft area, and to make programming available to those with financial need. All who are interested are encouraged to apply through our website (northhouse.org/courses/scholarships). 

Community Connections

From the abundant ladlefuls of chowder served to fight food insecurity with Empty Bowls during the Summer Solstice Festival to the many fish burgers served red ready and red hot at the Grand Marais Lions Club’s stand by North House staff volunteers, local partnerships throughout the year strengthened our community. The Northwoods Fiber Guild continued to be a key partner in hosting the annual Fiber Week event and leading youth programs. The Lutsen Junior Alpine Ski Team will collaborate again with North House on the 2026 Gear Sale during Winterers’ Gathering, raising funds to support their young athletes. The Good Harbor Hill Players’ and GAMEPALAJ’s Summer Solstice Pageant and the Winter Solstice Shadow Show are beloved by area residents and visitors alike! This tradition continues with the Winter Solstice Shadow Show at 6pm on Sunday, December 21.

North Shore partners play an essential role in Unplugged and the Points North Auction, which raises funds to support our year-round programs, classes, and public events. This year, event attendees, local partners, and donors helped us raise more than $130,000. A free evening concert with Jeffrey Foucault and Kris Delmhorst welcomed neighbors to gather together on campus for a musical evening in the Red Building. Superior Creamery delighted Saturday morning participants with free scoops of ice cream! Visit Cook County continues to be a key partner, providing generous funding for Unplugged and other events. 

Connecting Kids with Craft

North House continued our tradition of partnering with Cook County elementary schools to serve 120+ kids through annual field trips for 3rd, 4th, and 5th graders. The 18th year of the high school timber framing partnership created opportunities for students from ISD 166 to learn basic joinery through our Build with Purpose program that helps nonprofits to add the beautiful structures to their sites. Opportunities for local youth also included the multi-week after-school program, with an additional session introduced at Oshki Ogimaag Charter School due to increasing demand! 

Spring break and summer youth camps, free drop-in programs during special events, and other opportunities throughout the year played an important role in expanding creative opportunities for kids. All youth programs at North House continue to be offered at reduced prices, with scholarships offered to local families with the check of a box at registration. In 2025, we distributed a record number of scholarships, improving access for more than 80 young participants.