Photo courtesy of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies.
Free programs for veterans and older adults, artist funding, and statewide outreach cited in national recognition
The Delaware Division of the Arts has received a national award recognizing its efforts to make arts programs and funding more accessible to people throughout the state.
The National Assembly of State Arts Agencies presented Delaware with its 2026 Arts Access Agency Award, which honors state or regional arts agencies that expand participation, reduce barriers and extend public investment in the arts to more communities.
Division Director Jessica Ball accepted the award during NASAA’s national conference in Washington, D.C., held Oct. 7-9. The award was announced publicly Monday.
Delaware was recognized for programs that include free arts classes for older adults in libraries and senior centers, free arts programming for veterans, increased direct support for individual artists, free public exhibitions and events, and a statewide calendar connecting residents with arts and cultural activities.
The programs reach communities in all three counties.
Ball credited the Division’s staff and its relationships with community organizations and other state agencies for expanding the agency’s reach.
“I’m proud to accept this on behalf of the Delaware Division of the Arts, but I want to be clear about whose award this is: it belongs to our program officers and our staff,” Ball said.
She said staff members have built relationships throughout Delaware that help residents and organizations understand that state arts funding and programs are available to them.
“People take part when they trust you, and our team has earned that trust,” Ball said.
Bringing arts programs into communities
Secretary of State Charuni Patibanda-Sanchez said the recognition reflects the Division’s effort to bring programming directly to places Delawareans already use, including libraries, senior centers and veterans organizations.
“Delaware is a small state, but this team thinks and delivers big,” Patibanda-Sanchez said. “When the arts come to your neighborhood, they become part of everyday life.”
NASAA President and CEO Pam Breaux called Delaware a national example of how state arts agencies can broaden participation.
“Delaware exemplifies what it means to put access at the center of public arts work,” Breaux said.
She cited the Division’s continuing efforts to reach new audiences and remove barriers that can prevent people from participating in arts programs.
Juan Souki, executive director of Mid Atlantic Arts, said Delaware has demonstrated that arts access can go beyond a policy goal and become part of an agency’s regular programming.
“The Delaware Division of the Arts has shown what it looks like to make access more than a value statement,” Souki said.
Support for artists and organizations
The Division administers grants to arts organizations, community organizations and individual artists throughout Delaware. Current programs include operating support, project funding, arts education grants and artist opportunity grants.
The agency operates with funding provided through state appropriations and support from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Ball has also taken on a larger national role in arts policy. She was elected in 2025 to the NASAA board of directors for a three-year term beginning in 2026.
The Arts Access Agency Award recognizes a state arts agency or regional arts organization that demonstrates an emerging or sustained commitment to expanding access to arts programs and ensuring public arts funding reaches communities throughout its state or region.
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