About the National Center for Craftsmanship

Girl Making Metal Spoon, Sustainable Living Fair 2009, Fort Collins, COBuilding the Next Generation of Craftspeople

The NCC is a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational organization dedicated to the preservation, enhancement and sustainability of quality craftsmanship. Working with industry, institutional and government partners, we provide education, training, community service and research to support the retention and extension of craft skills at the local, regional, and national levels. Our organizational vision is a world that sustains a culture of quality, integrity and creativity. We value community and diversity, and strive to preserve and enhance the best practices of our shared experiences. Our mission is to develop to its fullest expression the spirit of craftsmanship that exists in each of us.

As a nation, critical shortages of skilled craftspeople have brought us to a point where businesses are unable to meet the needs of their customers due to a lack of qualified workers. As the current pool of craft workers continues to age, the knowledge, skills, and abilities of a valuable source of economic productivity is quickly concentrating in a diminishing percentage of the population. What remains more troubling is that much of this precious resource is being irrevocably lost.

The National Center for Craftsmanship was created to address these and other specific and important needs in the area of skilled craft labor education, training, and research. From construction and manufacturing to art and handicrafts, the articulation of knowledge and skill through tools and materials is the foundation of quality craftsmanship. The National Center for Craftsmanship is assuring that the knowledge, skills and abilities of our community’s finest craftspeople is passed on to future generations. Won’t you join us and help build the next generation of craftspeople?