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Arts Education in Delaware

Every child has the right to a well-rounded education, which includes the arts. The Delaware Division of the Arts ensures access to quality arts education for Pre K-12 youth in Delaware. We do this by:

  • Increasing access to arts education in the state through targeted funding that removes barriers to participation.
  • Providing professional development opportunities, convenings, and research that strengthen arts education in the state.
  • Collaborating with state and local leaders to advocate for and support greater access to arts education in the state.
  • Promoting and facilitating performance and exhibition opportunities for young people in the state.

On Thursday, March 17, 2016 the Delaware Board of Education voted to adopt new arts standards for Dance, Media Arts, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts.  These statements of learning, developed by teachers for teachers, will replace standards that have been used to guide instruction in arts classrooms for the last 20 years. Utilizing a framework which includes Philosophical Foundations and Lifelong Learning, the new standards focus on the creative process and highlight learning that includes Creating, Performing, Responding and Connecting across arts disciplines.

The Delaware Department of Education has produced three video webinars to serve as a resource for understanding the arts standards and ways to align curriculum to them.

 

The National Core Arts Standards are a process that guides educators in providing a unified quality arts education for students in Pre-K through high school. The standards outline the philosophy, primary goals, dynamic processes, structures, and outcomes that shape student learning and achievement in dance, media arts, music, theatre, and visual arts. Read more about the National Core Arts Standards.

Arts Education Partnership (AEP) is a national network of organizations dedicated to advancing the arts in education through research, policy and practice. Its vision is that every student in America succeeds in school, work and life as a result of a high quality education in and through the arts. Please visit ArtsEdSearch, a project of AEP, for online research and policy database focused on student and educator outcomes associated with arts learning in and out of school.

Delaware Department of Education‘s mission is to empower every learner with the highest quality education through shared leadership, innovative practices and exemplary services. On Thursday, March 17, the Delaware Board of Education voted to adopt new arts standards for Dance, Media Arts, Music, Theatre and Visual Arts.

These statements of learning, developed by teachers for teachers, will replace standards that have been used to guide instruction in arts classrooms for the last 20 years. Utilizing a framework which includes Philosophical Foundations and Lifelong Learning, the new standards focus on the creative process and highlight learning that includes Creating, Performing, Responding and Connecting across arts disciplines.

Delaware Arts Educators Association’s (DAEA) mission is to be a non-profit organization that promotes visual arts education in the State of Delaware.

Delaware Institute for the Arts in Education (DIAE) has been in operation as a non-profit arts education organization since 1982. Its mission is to enhance the quality of education by integrating multicultural arts experiences – workshops and live performances – into the daily curriculum of Delaware schools. It administers two arts programs: an Artist in Residency program for K-12 schools and the Delaware Wolf Trap program for pre-K classrooms.

Delaware Music Educators Association, a body of professional music educators, exists to improve music curricula and instruction for students in public, private, parochial and charter schools and to foster professional growth of all music educators in Delaware.

Delaware ThespiansSM is the state chapter of the Educational Theatre Association (EdTA), home of the International Thespian Society (ITS).  EdTA is a national, professional organization for theatre teachers/directors and teaching artists. ITS has been a school theatre honor society since 1929 and currently has more than 2.3 million members.


Arts Education Dashboard

This dashboard is intended to promote meaningful dialogue around arts education across Delaware and to encourage equitable and data-driven decisions that support a well-rounded education for all Delaware students.

The Delaware Arts Education Data Project is the product of a partnership between the Delaware Department of Education, Delaware Division of the Arts and the Delaware Arts Alliance.

Available Grants

Artist Residency 

Rolling Deadline

TranspARTation 

Rolling Deadline

 

Artist Roster

Teachers can browse the Artist Roster to find an experienced teaching artist to lead a hands-on workshop in their school.

 

Poetry Out Loud

Participate in the Delaware Poetry Out Loud State Competition

 

March for the Arts 

  • Held annually, entire month of March

 

National Arts in Education Week

  • September 11–17, 2022
  • September 10-16, 2023
  • Use the national hashtag #BecauseofArtsEd

Program Officer

Sheila Dean Ross
Arts Education and Accessibility
302-577-8286