DDOA Invites Public Comment on Its FY2022–FY2025 Strategic Plan

Wilmington, Del. (March 5, 2021) – The Delaware Division of the Arts (DDOA) invites public comment through March 14, 2021 on the final draft of its new four-year strategic plan. Public feedback is critical in finalizing the plan on behalf of constituents across the state. The Division envisions “a future when every person and community in Delaware has access to, and appreciation for, the diversity, richness, and transformative power of the arts.”

Members of the public can access both the draft plan for FY2022-FY2025 and the public comment submission form by visiting https://arts.delaware.gov/strategic-plan/. After reviewing the draft document, members of the public can offer feedback or comments during the public review period, before the Division finalizes the plan for approval by the Delaware State Arts Council.

Since October 2020, the Delaware Division of the Arts, the Delaware State Arts Council, and planning consultants from the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement have conducted focus groups, regional meetings, individual interviews, and online surveys. The process engaged more than 400 people representing a wide range of backgrounds to learn more about how the arts can help to enrich Delaware’s communities.

The result is a strategic plan designed to help the Division target its resources in effective and productive ways over the next four years, with a particular focus on expanding its commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion in programming, services, and outreach.

About the Delaware Division of the Arts
The Delaware Division of the Arts is an agency of the State of Delaware. Together with its advisory body, the Delaware State Arts Council, the Division administers grants and programs that support arts programming, educate the public, increase awareness of the arts, and integrate the arts into all facets of Delaware life. Funding for Division programs is provided by annual appropriations from the Delaware General Assembly and grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency. For more information about the Delaware Division of the Arts, visit arts.delaware.gov or call 302-577-8278.

The strategic plan for FY2022 – FY2026 to be released in March 2021

Dover, Del. (October 8, 2020) – The Division has partnered with the Delaware Alliance for Nonprofit Advancement to develop a new strategic plan for FY2022–FY2026 that identifies and incorporates the ideas, issues and initiatives of Delaware’s arts community including its artists, organizations, audiences and educators.

This strategic plan will reinforce and recognize the value of the arts as it relates to economic prosperity, education, strong communities, and individual health and wellbeing.

A primary focus in this planning process will be to identify ways in which the Division can better serve and elevate the arts sector in an equitable manner to cultivate expanded diversity and inclusion in programming, access, and allocation of resources.

The public input process will include one-on-one phone and virtual interviews with individuals, focus groups, multiple online surveys and virtual town halls.

October 2020 (by invitation only)

November 2020 (open to the public)

In late February 2021, a draft of the Division’s new Strategic Plan for FY2022-FY2026 will be released for public input, and in March 2021, the final plan will be formally approved by the Delaware State Arts Council and printed and published on the Division’s website at arts.delaware.gov/strategic-plan/.

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

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The Delaware Division of the Arts, a branch of the Delaware Department of State, is dedicated to cultivating and supporting the arts to enhance the quality of life for all Delawareans. Together with its advisory body, the Delaware State Arts Council, the Division administers grants and programs that support arts programming, educate the public, increase awareness of the arts, and integrate the arts into all facets of Delaware life. For more information about the Delaware Division of the Arts, visit arts.delaware.gov or call 302-577-8278.

Process Involved 14 Months of Internal, External Analysis and Outreach

NEW CASTLE (July 16, 2020) – After 14 months of analysis, employees and stakeholder online surveys, internal and external focus group interviews, and a focus on strengths and weaknesses of current operations by a strategic planning steering committee, the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) today released a draft strategic plan to achieve a goal of focusing on person-centered planning and social determinants of health to better integrate and connect the health of the Delaware residents it serves with other behavioral, environmental, social and policy influences.

The strategic planning builds on the work of Governor John Carney’s administration to focus on efficiency and accountability through the Governor’s Governmental Efficiency and Accountability Review (GEAR) Board. With Delaware more than four months into its COVID-19 response, the plan will become an important tool as DHSS adapts to serving the vast majority of its clients remotely.

“The recommendations in the draft strategic plan are especially important today as we are employing new and more efficient ways to provide integrated and person-centered services to Delawareans during the COVID-19 pandemic,” said DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker, who is leaving her position on July 31 to accept a new position with Nemours in Washington. “As the largest agency in state government, this plan provides an enhanced roadmap for streamlining the services we provide, while also saving taxpayer dollars in this challenging fiscal environment.”

“Our vision is to have high-quality operations across the Department and we have specific strategic recommendations in this plan for achieving this vision,” said Deputy Secretary Molly Magarik, who was appointed by Governor Carney as the next Cabinet Secretary for DHSS and confirmed by the Delaware Senate. “I want to thank all of the stakeholders and our employees who contributed to this plan. Now, I look forward to feedback from the public and taking the first steps forward in implementing the plan as a critical part of our COVID-19 response.”

“As Chair of the DHSS Reorganization Committee, I applaud the Department for maintaining its commitment to strategic improvement even while responding to the COVID-19 pandemic,” said state Senate Majority Leader Nicole Poore. “Many of the findings in the agency’s strategic plan align with several of the key issues identified by the DHSS Reorganization Committee. I look forward to collaborating with the Department as we continue the work of applying this strategic planning effort to produce better outcomes for the thousands of Delawareans who depend on this agency and its dedicated workforce each and every day.”

The four key areas for the Department to address through our strategic planning process included:

• DHSS staffing and workforce management
• Data integration and sharing across DHSS divisions
• Gaps in services provided by DHSS
• Person-centered service delivery

Since June 2019, the strategic goals were developed from a review of existing literature; an inventory of current Departmental programs; a stakeholder needs assessment which included surveys, focus groups, and key informant interviews; and input from experts in health care, business and policy. The DHSS Reorganization Committee, chaired by Senator Poore and co-chaired by Michael Houghton, also has echoed similar feedback over the past eight months and will continue to inform the efforts.

The DHSS report, available on DHSS’s website, includes details on the following three themes and six goals:

FOUNDATIONAL THEMES

1. Customer Service: The Department’s priority is to deliver quality services to Delawareans. We are committed to providing excellent service to our “customers” through all of our programs.
2. Measurable Outcomes: Data will drive the Department’s decision-making and we will use data to identify opportunities to improve service delivery and program design.
3. Coordination of Funding: The Department will look for opportunities to coordinate funding streams across divisions to strengthen opportunities for services.

STRATEGIC PLAN GOALS

• GOAL 1: Develop a person-centered approach to the service delivery system to meet the multi-faceted needs of individuals and families.
• GOAL 2: Improve the public health and safety infrastructure to protect the well-being of all Delawareans.
• GOAL 3: Build, align and strengthen the DHSS workforce to meet current and future service needs.
• GOAL 4: Enhance and integrate data to support data-driven decision-making and increase access to shared information within the Department, its divisions, and across the state.
• GOAL 5: Promote inclusive and routine communication among DHSS leadership, staff, stakeholders, and clients.
• GOAL 6: Strengthen the department-wide planning structure to support continuous improvement and increased efficiency, including routinely capturing feedback from staff, customers, and stakeholders.

The plan outlines objectives and strategies for each identified goal along with key performance indicators that will be used to track and evaluate the Department’s progress toward meeting these goals.

The plan is posted on the DHSS website for public comment for the next 60 days. Comments can be emailed to: DHSS_TownHall@delaware.gov

NEW CASTLE (Dec. 3, 2019) – After months of inventory analysis, stakeholder and employee online surveys and internal and external focus group interviews, the Department of Health and Social Services (DHSS) is seeking public input on draft goals and objectives as part of its ongoing strategic planning initiative.

The Department has posted the foundation of the initiative – consisting of the draft commitment, goals and objectives – on the DHSS website at https://dhss.delaware.gov/dhss/pubs.html (top item). The information about the strategic planning process is being shared to gather input about the plan.

DHSS Secretary Dr. Kara Odom Walker began the process of strategic planning in 2017 as part of the statewide Governmental Efficiency and Accountability Review (GEAR) effort. The Department issued a Request for Proposal in August 2018 and Health Management Associates (HMA), a nationally recognized health consulting firm, was awarded a competitive contract to facilitate the process.

Through HMA, the Department has conducted internal and external focus group interviews, stakeholder and employee surveys, and an inventory analysis of DHSS’ 11 divisions and its 193 individual programs and services.

“Over the past several months, we have received a great deal of input, which we have used to develop the plan’s foundation,” Secretary Walker said. “Now we want to build on that foundation with more input from you as we develop the plan’s strategies. In the coming weeks, I will also announce dates, times and places for town halls, so we can hear directly from you about our strategic needs.

“We ask for your feedback not only about the parts of the plan drafted so far, but also for your suggestions about specific strategies that should be put into place to meet the goals and objectives.”

Comments on the draft content, as well as potential strategies, can be sent via email to: DHSS_TownHall@delaware.gov – that’s Delaware(underscore)TownHall@delaware.gov.

Final strategic plan recommendations – built through a series of outreach efforts involving DHSS leadership from all divisions, service providers, advocacy groups and the public – are expected in February 2020.

The Delaware Division of the Arts is inviting public comment on the final draft of its new strategic plan, Design Delaware 2.0. Comments may be submitted by email to delarts@delaware.gov from February 12-22, 2015.

Over the past several months, the Delaware Division of the Arts, the Delaware State Arts Council, and planning consultants Maren Brown Associates, have conducted focus groups, regional meetings, individual interviews, and online surveys. More than 900 people, representing a wide range of backgrounds and experiences, have provided input about how the arts can help to enrich our communities and our state.

“We are grateful to everyone who participated in focus group meetings, interviews, and responded to our online surveys,” said Division of the Arts Director Paul Weagraff. “Their input was essential to the process of creating this plan. The result is a strategic plan designed to help us target our resources in effective and productive ways over the next five years.”

The final draft of Design Delaware 2.0 is available here: www.artsdel.org/DesignDelaware/DE-DraftPlan.pdf.

After the public review period ends on February 22, 2015, the final plan will be submitted to the Delaware State Arts Council for approval.