DNREC seeks input on Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act Regulatory Advisory Committee’s preliminary recommendations

Three open houses to be held Feb. 25, 26 and 27 in New Castle County 

DOVER – Delaware’s Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control (DNREC) will hold three public open houses  in New Castle County this month – on Feb. 25, 26 and 27 – seeking input on preliminary recommendations made by the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act Regulatory Advisory Committee.

The Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act requires DNREC to develop and promulgate regulations for the redevelopment of 14 heavy industry use sites in Delaware’s Coastal Zone by Oct. 1, 2019. The Regulatory Advisory Committee was convened by DNREC in June 2018 to provide recommendations regarding the regulations.

The open houses will present the Committee’s preliminary recommendations for the public to review and provide comment. The open houses will be held from 5-8 p.m. on these three dates:

  • Monday, Feb. 25, Claymont Community Center, 3301 Green Street, Claymont, DE 19703
  • Tuesday, Feb. 26, Delaware City Fire Hall, 815 5th Street, Delaware City, DE 19706
  • Wednesday, Feb. 27, Elbert Palmer Elementary School, 1210 Lobdell Street, Wilmington, DE 19801

Members of the public may attend at any point and for any length of time during the open houses.

Each open house will follow the same format. Attendees will be able to view a video presentation about the legislative changes and the process leading to the Regulatory Advisory Committee’s preliminary recommendations. Attendees will also be able to walk around and visit various informational booths that explain the different aspects of the Committee’s preliminary recommendations. Attendees will be able to provide input on feedback forms. The forms will be available at the workshop as well as on DNREC’s website prior to the events.

Public input gathered at the workshops will be compiled by the Consensus Building Institute (CBI), a non-profit organization that has facilitated the Regulatory Advisory Committee’s meetings. CBI will compile all public input into a report and provide the report to the Committee for its consideration before finalizing its recommendations to DNREC. DNREC will also make the report available for the public to view on its website.

For more information on the Coastal Zone Conversion Permit Act Regulatory Advisory Committee, please visit www.de.gov/czcparac. To receive updates on the regulatory process for developing conversion permits, you can also subscribe to the Coastal Zone Act email listserv by sending a blank email to join-dnrec_coastal_zone@lists.state.de.us.

Contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

Vol. 49, No. 26

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Governor Carney Announces Trauma-Informed Initiatives

Family Services Cabinet Council launches Compassionate Champion Award, Trauma Awareness Month Planning

WILMINGTON, Del. – Governor John Carney on Tuesday announced two new initiatives from the Family Services Cabinet Council to implement Executive Order 24, which launched efforts to make Delaware a trauma-informed state. The Family Services Cabinet Council – a cabinet-level group reestablished by Governor Carney in February 2017 to coordinate public and private services for Delaware families – will promote Trauma Awareness Month throughout Delaware during May 2019 and launch the Compassionate Champion Award, a recognition program for champions of this work.

“We need to do everything we can to support children and families in Delaware who are affected by trauma in their lives,” said Governor Carney. “Delaware has many dedicated, boots-on-the-ground workers and organizations that are practicing trauma-informed care and helping Delawareans get the services they need. We are committed to working together to support, promote, and recognize more of these efforts to help build stronger, healthier and more trauma-informed communities across our state.”

Learn more about the Family Services Cabinet Council: de.gov/fscc

The Compassionate Champion Award is a new trauma-informed care recognition program to highlight outstanding achievement by individuals and organizations that provide trauma-informed services.

This award will recognize individuals or teams in government, non-profit and private organizations, first responder professions, education, and other agencies that have taken steps toward providing services in a manner consistent with trauma-informed care criteria in the Delaware Developmental Framework for Trauma Informed Care, a document that outlines best practices for trauma-informed care. The Framework was adapted from the Missouri Model of trauma-informed care, and was produced in collaboration by the Family Services Cabinet Council ACEs Subcommittee and the Compassionate Connections Partnership.

The Compassionate Champion Award nomination form is now available, and the deadline to apply is April 1, 2019. Nominations may also be submitted by downloading the application  found on the Compassionate Champion Award webpage and emailing the form to fscc@delaware.gov, or mailing it to Compassionate Champion Award, Office of the Governor – Carvel State Office Building, 820 N. French Street, 12th Floor, Wilmington, DE 19801.

“The Children’s Department is pleased to be on the frontline of Delaware’s efforts to become a trauma-informed state,” said Josette Manning, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Services for Children, Youth, and Their Families. “Adverse childhood experiences can have life altering impacts if they are not recognized and addressed properly. The Compassionate Champion Award will help recognize the important work that is being done every day in Delaware to help increase awareness and mitigate the impact of trauma on our children, families and communities.”

“We must support our educators by providing the training and resources they need to be better informed about of the effects of trauma on students,” said Dr. Susan Bunting, Secretary of the Delaware Department of Education. “Recent state-sponsored professional development has offered educators the chance to learn more about the research around childhood trauma and the effect of toxic stress on brain development. Our hope is that such training will translate into their more effectively supporting those who have been impacted by trauma.”

“Awareness of trauma is a critical step in supporting and promoting recovery for Delawareans, young people and adults, who have experienced trauma in their lives,” said Dr. Kara Odom Walker, a board-certified family physician and Secretary of the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services. “At the Department of Health and Social Services, we have trained 1,000 employees who have the greatest level of direct client contact in the trauma-informed approach. A workforce that understands what trauma is, how it affects people across their lifespans, and the most effective ways to assess and meet our clients’ needs will help us build resilience among the people we serve so they learn to thrive in their communities.”

The Family Services Cabinet Council also invites members of the public to participate in planning for Trauma Awareness Month happening this May. Organizations and individuals involved with trauma-informed care are encouraged to submit event ideas for Trauma Awareness Month, and information for trauma-related events already scheduled in May, using an online form.

Events submitted before March 15, 2019 will be reviewed and added to a digital calendar that is shared with the public prior to Trauma Awareness Month to promote trainings, workshops and other events.

Members of the public who would like to be involved with Trauma Awareness Month planning are invited to attend the Trauma Awareness Month Steering Group’s public meetings on February 20, and March 20, 2019. The meeting details will be listed on Delaware’s public meeting calendar.

In October 2018, Governor Carney signed Executive Order 24, making Delaware a trauma-informed state and providing direction for the Family Services Cabinet Council to help mitigate the impact of adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and build resilience in children, adults and communities.

Find more information about the Family Services Cabinet Council, the Compassionate Champion Award, and Trauma Awareness Month here: de.gov/fscc

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Related news:
Delaware continues focus on trauma-informed practices
Governor Carney Signs Executive Order Making Delaware a Trauma-Informed State
Governor Carney Announces Family Services Cabinet Council Summer Initiative
Delaware Receives UPenn Technical Assistance Grant to Develop Integrated Data System
Governor Carney, First Lady, Casey Family Programs Announce “First Chance Delaware”
In Partnership with Wilmington University, DHSS Begins Yearlong Initiative to Train 1,000 Staff Members in Trauma-Informed Approaches to Assessing and Meeting the Needs of Clients
Governor Carney Reestablishes the Family Services Cabinet Council


Killing of Hockessin Man Resolved With Guilty Plea

Benjamin Rauf, the New York man charged with the 2015 killing of a Hockessin man found shot in his car, has pled guilty to the fatal shooting.

Rauf, 29, of Westerlo, NY pled guilty yesterday to Manslaughter and Possession of a Firearm During the Commission of a Felony in connection with the shooting death of 25-year-old Shazim Uppal.

In August 2015, Uppal, a law school classmate of Rauf, was found dead after being shot multiple times while sitting in his parked car on Saint Claire Drive in Hockessin.

A Superior Court judge will sentence Rauf later this month to between 5 and 50 years in prison. Deputy Attorneys General Brian Robertson, Cari Chapman, and Matthew Keating secured the plea, with assistance from paralegals Kim Moro and Kelly Drzymalski. Retired New Castle County Police detective John Ziemba was the Chief Investigating Officer.


The Division of the Arts to Host Annual State Employee Art Exhibition

More than 270 state employees and their family members have registered to show artwork at Delaware State University Art Center/Gallery

Dover, Del. (February 5, 2019) – The free exhibition will be open to the public from February 25 to March 18, 2019 at the Art Center/Gallery at Delaware State University, Dover. The reception and awards ceremony will be held on Sunday, March 17 at 1 p.m. in the Longwood Auditorium, Bank of America Building at Delaware State University. Prizes to be awarded include:

  • Adult, Amateur, Intermediate and Professional: 3 – First Place Awards of $350; 3 – Second Place Awards of $250; and 3 – Third Place Awards of $150
  • Youth / Teen: 2 – First Place Awards of $150; 2- Second Place Awards of $100; and 2 – Third Place Awards of $50
  • A Best of Show Award of $400
  • An Art Education Award of $200 for reimbursement for arts instruction and materials
  • People’s Choice Award, Facebook and in-person ballot

Additional awards including Honorable Mentions will be awarded at the discretion of the judges. Awards are limited to one cash award per artist per classification.

Sponsored by the National Arts Program in support and cooperation with the State of Delaware and the Delaware Division of the Arts, the exhibit is judged by professional artists and visual art professionals. The Delaware State Employee Art Exhibition is designed to give artists at all skill levels a unique opportunity to exhibit their creative work and to compete for cash prizes.

Participants must be a current employee or immediate family member of a current employee of the State of Delaware. All entries must be the original work of the applicant and completed within the last three years. View last year’s participant artwork.

Gallery Hours

Monday-Tuesday, Thursday-Friday, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Wednesday, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.; and Saturday, 3/2 and 3/9 from noon to 4 p.m. Visitor information

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Contact: Leeann Wallett, Program Officer, Communications and Marketing
302-577-8280, leeann.wallett@delaware.gov


DNREC soliciting RFPs for projects to benefit Delaware’s environment through VW Mitigation Plan settlement funds

DNREC sets public meeting set for Wednesday, Feb. 13 in Dover

DOVER – The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control will host a public meeting Wednesday, Feb. 13 in Dover to solicit requests for proposals on projects benefiting the state’s environment to be funded by lawsuits settled against Volkswagen and Audi for installing emissions “defeat devices” on the automakers’ vehicles in violation of the federal Clean Air Act. The meeting will be held at the State Street Commons Building, 100 W. Water Street, Suite 6A, Dover, DE 19904.

Delaware anticipates spending approximately $3.2 million from an Environmental Mitigation Trust established through partial settlements against the automakers. This is the second of three rounds of the mitigation trust’s settlement funding for the state, with each round providing the same amount of funding, or about $9.6M in total for Delaware. DNREC’s Division of Air Quality has begun soliciting proposals on projects that reduce nitrogen oxide (NOx) emissions from the following environmental mitigation actions:

  • Class 8 Local Freight and Port Drayage Trucks
  • Class 4 School Bus, Shuttle bus, or Transit Bus
  • Freight Switchers
  • Ferries/Tugs
  • Ocean Going Vessels
  • Class 4-7 Local Freight Trucks
  • Airport Ground Support Equipment
  • Forklifts and Port Cargo Handling Equipment

The solicitation can be found on the state Office of Management and Budget website at: bids.delaware.gov. The Feb. 13 pre-bid meeting hosted by DNREC is intended to provide an overview of the Volkswagen Environmental Mitigation application process.

Comments and questions will be considered during the meeting. Both may be submitted before the meeting to Deanna Morozowich at Deanna.morozowich@delaware.gov or online to the VW Mitigation mailbox at VW_Mitigation_Plan@delaware.gov. Written questions will be received by the Division of Air Quality until Friday, March 4.

Proposals for projects that seek funding from the VW Environmental Mitigation Trust are due by DNREC close of business Thursday, March 28. VW Environmental Mitigation Funds are expected to be awarded during the second half of the year.

More information on the VW Mitigation Plan is available on the DNREC website. More about the Feb. 13 public meeting can be found on the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar.

CONTACT: Michael Globetti, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902

Vol. 49, No. 27

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