The CREATE Plan gave Delaware a roadmap, and the Arts and Culture Caucus is putting it into motion. Formed as a bipartisan, bicameral group of legislators, the caucus has become a forum where policymakers, artists, and advocates work together to strengthen the state’s creative economy. In partnership with the Delaware Arts Alliance, it has already helped deliver new funding and policy action to strengthen the creative economy.
State Senator Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman shared that the CREATE Plan has reshaped the way Delaware legislators approach arts advocacy.
“One of the things that’s been really transformative for this caucus was when the CREATE Plan was created,” she said. “It has just been incredibly eye-opening to have this report reflecting what arts and artists and arts institutions are thinking and experiencing, and really giving us some direction.”
Neil Kirschling, Executive Director of the Delaware Arts Alliance, explained how the caucus is fulfilling one of the plan’s key recommendations by creating a shared space for dialogue.
“The Arts and Culture Caucus in Delaware really has embodied that ideal of breaking down silos and creating a forum for folks to come and discuss the creative economy,” he said. “It’s really helping advance that recommendation, and it’s a forum to think through how we put in place positive policies aligned to the CREATE Plan that support artists.”
That collaborative approach has already delivered results. Together with arts advocates, the caucus has secured three consecutive years of increased state funding for the arts, advancing the CREATE Plan’s call for more equitable investment (Recommendation #13). Legislators also passed a resolution to explore career and technical education pathways in the creative sector, a step toward expanding arts-related courses and degrees (Recommendation #17).
Lockman emphasized that this progress is directly tied to the plan. She shared, “[The CREATE Plan] has really enabled us to attract more attention, to be more effective in asking for things like increases to the budget line for arts and culture.”
State Representative Bryan Shupe highlighted how these efforts go beyond the arts sector itself, linking creativity to broader statewide priorities.
“The Arts and Culture Caucus is an amazing opportunity for the public and legislators to get together to see how we can not only promote and celebrate the arts here in Delaware, but how we can reach people and get more arts initiatives inside of our education system, help people understand that there is a path to sustainability and economic development, and work on pathways, in order to have people create a whole economic system around our arts here in the First State.”
Shupe pointed out that the CREATE Plan shows how the arts touch nearly every aspect of life in Delaware.
“Most people, when they see art, they focus on maybe a painting or a ballet,” he said. “But there’s so much more to what we can do here in Delaware, all the way from mental health to education to creating a business. The CREATE Plan really brings us all together to see how arts and culture really encompass our everyday life and really drive all these other policies together in a positive way.”
As the caucus looks ahead, legislators and advocates agree that sustained funding, expanded partnerships, and continued community engagement will be essential.
Kirschling stressed the shared commitment at the heart of this work. “The Arts and Culture Caucus embodies the ideal that the arts are for everyone. This is a group of legislators who are bipartisan, bicameral, up and down the state. They represent all different sorts of communities and constituents, and yet there’s this common tie that binds, and it’s a recognition of the importance of the arts.”