Sixteen Delaware artists are being recognized by the Delaware Division of the Arts for the high quality of their artwork. Work samples from 91 Delaware choreographers, composers, musicians, writers, and visual artists were reviewed by out-of-state arts professionals, considering demonstrated creativity and skill in their art form. The 16 selected fellows reside throughout Delaware, including in Bethel, Dover, Lewes, New Castle, Newark, Rehoboth Beach, and Wilmington.

Awards are given in three categories—$3,000 for the Emerging Professional Award, $6,000 for the Established Professional Award, and $10,000 for the Masters Award. Artist fellows are required to offer at least one exhibit or performance during the upcoming year, providing an opportunity for the public to experience their work.

“Individual Artist Fellowship grants provide the recognition and exposure that artists need to successfully promote their work,” said Delaware Division of the Arts Director Paul Weagraff. “The financial award allows them to pursue advanced training, purchase equipment and materials, or fulfill other needs to advance their careers.”

The Masters Fellowship is open to differing artistic disciplines each year. In Fiscal Year 2015, Masters Fellowship applications were accepted in Dance, Jazz, and Music, from artists who had previously received an Established Professional Fellowship. In addition to exemplifying high artistic quality, Masters Fellowship applicants must also demonstrate their involvement and commitment to the arts in Delaware.

Kimberly Reighley (Wilmington) has been awarded this year’s Masters Fellowship. Reighley plays baroque and modern flute, is co-artistic director of Mélomanie, plays principal flute with the Delaware Symphony Orchestra and OperaDelaware, and has performed with Brandywine Baroque as well as numerous ensembles in Pennsylvania and California.

Listed below are the 16 Delaware Division of the Arts 2015 Individual Artist Fellows and three Honorable Mentions. Contact information for the artists may be obtained from Roxanne Stanulis, the Division’s Artist Services Coordinator, at (302) 577-8283 or Roxanne.Stanulis@delaware.gov.

2015 INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWS

Masters Award ($10,000)

Kimberly Reighley, Wilmington, Music: Solo Recital

Established Professional Award ($6,000)

Robert M. Bickey, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Sculpture
Gail Braune Comorat, Lewes, Literature: Poetry
Kevin Cope, Newark, Music: Composition
Christopher Nichols, Newark, Music: Solo Recital
Russell Reece, Bethel, Literature: Fiction
Jeffrey Rubin, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Photography
Billie Travalini, Wilmington, Literature: Creative Nonfiction
Lance Winn, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Painting

Emerging Professional Award ($3,000)

Judy Catterton, Rehoboth Beach, Literature: Creative Nonfiction
Barbara Gray, Wilmington, Literature: Fiction
Tom Newby, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Painting
Britania Redington, Dover, Music: Solo Recital
James Ulry, Dover, Visual Arts: Crafts
Lindsey Warren, Newark, Literature: Poetry
Karoline Wileczek, Newark, Visual Arts: Works on Paper

Honorable Mention

Kevin Bielicki, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Sculpture
Yaprak Soysal, Bear, Visual Arts: Photography
Shannon Connor Winward, Newark, Literature: Fiction

The next deadline for Individual Artist Fellowship applications is August 3, 2015.

 DDD Grant Program FAQ

Inaugural round of applications results in designation of one District in each county

Wilmington, DE – Following through on the state’s commitment to help revitalize downtowns and surrounding neighborhoods in Delaware’s neediest areas, Governor Markell today announced he has selected Seaford, Dover, and Wilmington for designation as Downtown Development Districts (DDDs). Under the DDD program, the first three DDDs must include one District in each county.

“The Downtown Development District program has generated a high level of enthusiasm and interest, and I was impressed by the overall quality of the applications submitted,” said Governor Markell. “In addition to demonstrating significant need, each of the winning applicants submitted thoughtful plans with detailed strategies to strengthen neighborhoods, spur private investment, and improve housing opportunities for residents of all walks of life. On behalf of the state, I look forward to working in partnership with the winning applicants as they make their plans a reality.”

The DDD program was created by legislation proposed by the Governor and passed unanimously by the General Assembly last year. Under the program, designated Districts will be entitled to receive significant development incentives and other benefits to spur investment and community development.

A total of nine localities applied to have a portion of their city, town, or unincorporated area designated as a DDD.  The applications were evaluated in accordance with three main criteria: (1) need and impact; (2) the quality of the district plan submitted by the applicant; and (3) local incentives offered.

Among other benefits, investors who make qualified real estate investments in DDDs will be entitled to receive grants of up to 20% of the cost of their investments. The DDD Grant program is modeled in part after a Virginia program that has proven successful in leveraging significant amounts of private investment in under-served areas.

The DDD Grant program, which was funded last year by a $7 million allocation by the General Assembly, will be administered by the Delaware State Housing Authority (DSHA). DSHA will begin accepting DDD Grant applications next week.

Events to celebrate the designation and allow local officials to discuss the details of their plans will be held in each of the three designated districts this week as follows:

• Monday, January 12^th at 9:30 a.m., Seaford City Hall, 414 High Street, Seaford
• Tuesday, January 13^th at 11 a.m., Bayard Plaza, 200 W. Loockerman Street, Dover
• Wednesday, January 14^th at 9 a.m., DCAD, 600 N. Market Street, Wilmington

More information on the events to come in the Governor’s Week/Day Ahead schedules.

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Dover – As we welcome a new year and hopefully a safer year, Delaware Highway Safety officials are reporting preliminary end of year total traffic fatalities. In 2014, Delaware saw a twenty percent (20%) increase in traffic fatalities compared to 2013. Delaware experienced 101 fatalities in 2013 compared to 125 in 2014.   Within the past twelve years, the highest number of traffic fatalities that occurred in a single year in Delaware was in 2003 with 148 total traffic fatalities followed by 2006 with 147.   The lowest year was 2013 with 101 traffic fatalities.

“With nearly half (46%) of our highway fatalities resultin g from impaired driving and another 43% of those fatalities stemming from a failure to wear a seatbelt, the tragedy is that these deaths were preventable. The increase in highway fatalities over the past year is quite concerning as our motorists need to understand the consequences of their action,” said Lewis D. Schiliro, Secretary of Safety and Homeland Security.

Impairment by alcohol and other drugs continues to be a major factor in overall traffic crashes and fatalities. Alcohol and drug related fatalities made up forty-seven percent (47%) of the total motor vehicle crash fatalities, This is a slight increase from 2013. The major increases in fatalities involved motor vehicle occupants involved in traffic crashes as compared to other highway users, including pedestrians and motorcyclists.   In addition, tragically there were twelve crashes in which more than one person was killed. Contributing factors to the multiple fatality crashes included speed and/or impaired driving.

New Year’s Eve signaled the end of the 2014 Checkpoint Strikeforce and Safe Family Holiday campaigns. With the 12 DUI arrests from New Year’s Eve, that brings the total number of people arrested for DUI in Delaware to 4,086 in 2014, down from 2013 in which 4,249 persons were arrests for DUI statewide.

“The Office of Highway Safety remains committed to implementing sound initiatives designed to encourage safer driving on Delaware roads,” said Jana Simpler, director of the Office of Highway Safety. “We will continue to work with our safety partners to develop campaigns to protect all motorists on our roads.”

Seat belt use has increased slightly across Delaware last year. Delaware’s seat belt use rate is currently ninety-two percent (92%) compared to the national seat belt use rate of eighty-seven percent (87%). Motorcycle fatalities decreased twenty-five percent (25%) from 2013 to 2014. In 2013, twenty motorcyclists lost their lives on Delaware roads and in 2014, that number was fifteen. Pedestrian and bicycle fatalities both saw a slight increase from 2013. There were three bicycle fatalities in 2014 compared to two in 2013. Pedestrian fatalities continue to be a traffic issue with seven occurring in December 2014 alone. There were twenty-seven pedestrian fatalities last year compared to twenty-six the year before. Delaware has previously focused on aggressive driving crashes as a whole but has now turned the focus to speed, the predominate aggressive driving crash factor. Speed has contributed to 44 of the 112 fatal crashes in 2014.

“We will continue our statewide education and outreach efforts in 2015 to make pedestrians aware of safe walking and crossing practices to try and curb the pedestrian safety issues at hand in Delaware,” said Alison Kirk, community relations officer for the Delaware Office of Highway Safety.

As 2015 begins, OHS will conduct its first traffic safety mobilization of the new year focusing on unrestrained and improperly restrained occupants in vehicles, as well as speeding drivers. Beginning January 16, state and local law enforcement agencies across the state will be conducting overtime saturation patrols after 2:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday when this crash problem is at its highest. Examples of improperly worn seat belts are those that are put behind the back or under the arm.  For a seat belt to be effective and save a life, it must be worn properly with the lap belt low and snug across the hips and the shoulder harness worn across the shoulder and chest with minimal slack.

For more information visit our website for updates at www.ohs.delaware.gov, follow us on Twitter @DEHighwaySafe, , or like us on Facebook at www.facebook.com/ArriveAliveDE.

(DOVER, Del.—Jan. 9, 2015)—One of Delaware’s most historic homes will host an evening of guided tours, refreshments and music during the program “A Taste of Buena Vista” that will take place from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, Feb. 27, 2015 at the Buena Vista mansion located at 661 S. Dupont Highway (Route 13), in New Castle, Del. Tickets for the event are $5 (free for children 10-years-old and under), and are available in advance only at the Shop Delaware website. (Go to http://shop.delaware.gov and click the “events” link). No tickets will be sold at the door. For additional information, call 302-323-4430.

“A Taste of Buena Vista” will feature guided tours of the historic mansion, plus hors d’oeuvres from Newark’s Caffe Gelato and a variety of coffee options from Pike Creek Roasterie presented by Penn’s Place Coffee Shop in New Castle. Live harp music will be performed throughout the evening’s festivities.

The main section of the Buena Vista mansion was built between 1845 and 1847 by John M. Clayton, United States secretary of state from 1849 to 1850 under presidents Taylor and Fillmore, and United States senator from 1829 to 1836, 1845 to 1849, and 1853 until his death in 1856. The home later became the residence of C. Douglass Buck, governor of Delaware from 1929 to 1937 and United States senator from 1942 to 1948. Buena Vista and its grounds were donated to the state by the Buck family in 1965 and now serve as a conference center administered by the Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs.

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Contact:
Jim Yurasek
Delaware Division of Historical and Cultural Affairs
Phone: 302-736-7413
E-mail: Jim.Yurasek@delaware.gov
Web: http://history.delaware.gov

Preparing our students to make the most of their talents means recognizing the new reality of today’s world. It’s a reality in which thousands of our residents support their families by working locally at companies that are headquartered internationally. And Delaware companies increasingly do business with customers around the world. In this reality, learning a second language is more valuable than ever. So we set a goal of enrolling 10,000 students in language immersion within a decade, giving them the chance to learn half of their subjects in either Spanish or Chinese beginning in kindergarten and to become proficient by fourth grade. This past week we announced that we’re on track to meet our goal, with six new schools adding immersion programs this fall, bringing our total to 17.

Next year, more than 2,300 students will have the chance to participate. While expanding that program, we’re also creating new opportunities, and we know there is no better way for our students to learn another language and culture than to live in it. This summer, we start a partnership with one of China’s biggest companies. Wanxiang will fund a four-week summer study abroad program that will be available to high schoolers enrolled in Chinese courses. Students will receive daily language instruction, participate in cultural activities, and tour science and technology companies. Delawareans should expect that our schools prepare students with the skills that are most valued in good-paying jobs. By continuing to expand language learning opportunities in Delaware, we have the chance to provide our kids and our state an edge in a multilingual and multicultural workforce. And that will keep Delaware moving forward.