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Senate Education Committee Meeting

Wednesday, March 18, 2026·37m·▶ Watch / Listen

The Senate Education Committee heard testimony on two bills — SB260, which would create an optional Delaware Certificate of Arts Excellence for students demonstrating sustained achievement in the arts, and HB12 with House Amendment 1, which would establish a $2,500 scholarship for students who completed the Delaware Teacher Academy and are enrolling in an Educator Preparation Program. Neither bill was voted on during the hearing, but both drew broad support and multiple members expressed interest in co-sponsoring each.

Key Actions

·SB260 – Delaware Certificate of Arts ExcellenceNo Vote

+ 2 more actions

Controversies

Whether legislation was necessary to create the arts certificate or whether schools could create their own

Senator [Ford — UNCLEAR] asked whether schools couldn't simply create their own certification without legislation. Senator Cruce and Kendall Massett responded that a state-level certificate carries different weight than a school-created one, with Massett citing the certificate of multiliteracy as a model already recognized by colleges when students apply.

Notable Quotes

“14 already demonstrating that arts instruction is not supplemental but central to student development in succession. Although it's similar, we're proposing in this bill is similar to that certificate. The bill we're introducing would be a formal statewide recognition that's specific to arts art achievement and supported by the Delaware Department of Education. Also, this room probably knows that Senate Concurrent Resolution 109 passed last year and was sponsored by our Arts and Culture Caucus Chair, Senator Lachman, which directed the DOE DOL Workforce Development Board to collaborate and report out on opportunities this one to bring”

Senator Tizzy Lockman — Senator Lockman was explaining her support for SB260, which would create an optional state-level Certificate of Arts Excellence to formally recognize students with sustained achievement in the arts.

+ 4 more quotes

Votes

Approval of March 11th meeting minutesPassed
Motion to adjournPassed
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TranscriptPreview
Are we recording? Recording in progress. Okay. The Senate Education Committee meeting is called to order. If anyone is participating virtually and experience technical difficulties, you can email Nicole Alvarez. A L V A r e d elaware.gov as you know, public register for this meeting via the link posted on our website along with instructions for providing public comment. Members of the public, particularly those in person, should be signing up for attendance as well as indicating if you'd like to speak on either of the bills today. Down at the end of the table. So we're going to start today's meeting by taking a roll call. Attendance committee members present. I am your vice chair, Senator Tizzy Lachman. I am here. Our chairwoman, Senator Laura Sturgeon, will be joining us in a little while. So she's absent currently. Senator Dave Sekola. Here. Senator Stephanie Houston. Here. Senator Nicole Poor. Absent. Senator Eric Clutchen and Senator Dave Mawson. We do have a sufficient number, a number of members present, so we are going to move on to our agenda. First, we will review the meeting minutes from March 11th. Oh, and here she is. If there are no questions,…
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