Delaware is showing the nation what it looks like to treat artists as professionals. OperaDelaware’s new salaried artist program provides singers with steady pay, health benefits, and housing support while also engaging them in community programs and organizational leadership. It’s a model that speaks directly to CREATE Plan Recommendation #7, which calls for fair pay…
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When the Creative Economy Advancement and Tourism Expansion (CREATE) Plan launched last year, it called for bold, actionable steps to better support Delaware’s creative economy. Today, we’re already seeing those recommendations take root in a meaningful way. In December 2023, New Castle County passed Ordinance 23-160, creating its first Public Arts Commission, a milestone that…
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Delaware is looking to the past to reimagine how public investment can support artists as workers in the future. At the Delaware Art Museum, this work is taking shape through Citizen Artist, a 2026 exhibition that will coincide with the nation’s semiquincentennial and celebrate the legacy of artist workers in America. Beginning with Franklin D.…
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“The Division [of Small Business] does a really good job of helping startups and big business, but we need improvement and the missing middle, and the creative economy fits that bucket. When I say “missing middle”, we don’t have a lot of programs specifically geared towards that. That’s something we’re looking to change, and hopefully…
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2025 End of Legislative Session Summary Thank you for a successful 2025 Legislative Session, our first since the launch of the CREATE Plan AND first since welcoming a new Gubernatorial Administration, including new agency heads, and new faces in the legislature. With the CREATE Plan in hand, Delawareans had a clear policy vision for addressing…
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