As a second-generation college graduate, I was familiar with the march toward postsecondary education that kicked off when my own kids entered high school. We did the online searches. (Okay, that part was new since I graduated high school.) Still, with the benefits of my flexible schedule, access to internet and transportation, and a knowledge of the system, we availed ourselves of twelve schools/university tours in four states, circling back to six universities for a second look. My husband and I made sure our kids had adequate SAT prep and participation in activities that would send their resumes to the top of the pile. We applied for grants and aid to supplement our college savings accounts. In the hot summers before their senior years, I huddled with each of my kids at the dining room table as they wrote their college essays. If you asked them, they would roll their eyes and tell you that having their writer mother hound them to “be more specific” and “find a better transition” was hardly an advantage. But to smart kids from low-income households or whose parents never went to college, it is the lack of this kind of guidance and accessibility that that puts otherwise excellent candidates at a disadvantage. In fact, 53% of low-income students do not apply to a single college that matches their grades and test scores. And only 16 percent enroll in a highly selective four-year college.
You are here
IN the News
The roots of Gable Music Ventures run deep on Market. Seeds first planted in 2011 that have bloomed and branched out touch every block on the street, every business with a stage, and every nook and cranny where music could possibly fit. Owners Jeremy Hebbel and Gayle Dillman produce what Billboard magazine has called the nation’s “largest celebration of women in music,” the annual Ladybug Festival, and though their growing festival lineup now extends as far as Smyrna and Delaware City, they remain committed to the street where they started. We chatted with Jeremy (Gayle was, sadly, out of town) about many of the milestones they’ve passed along the way…
It doesn’t take much for a mention of our state to make the viral rounds in our city’s social circle. A mere hint of the name “Joe Biden” and Twitter and Facebook feeds of everyone from INfluencers to your great aunt go wild with extreme opinions from the widest of angles. Back when the film Fight Club revealed in its dialog its Delaware setting, we all went kinda crazy just hearing our city’s name, even without the aid of social media. Our small size and low population usually keeps us off the map of public interest and that, combined with an obvious identity crisis likely rooted in our proximal Mason-Dixon heritage and an agrarian/corporate economy, has led to a mix of prideful sharing and staunch defense from natives when there is mention of our home...
Three years ago, Delaware Shakespeare celebrated the first Shakespeare Day in front of the Grand Opera House and the crowds shut down Market. This year, the company stayed out of traffic and placed their scene inside the new Chelsea Plaza -- and to that stage, community members from throughout city came to recite lines from all 38 Shakespearean plays. (Chelsea Tavern and UDairy Creamery played their own starring roles, with Chelsea’s Joe Van Horn performing a few lines and the creamery creating a special “Winter’s Tale”-themed pear-flavored ice cream, with pear pieces and a graham swirl.)
Think about the words ‘culture’ and ‘cultivate’. Both come from the Latin root word ‘cultus’ which means ‘care.’ Here in Wilmington, we pride ourselves in our cultural offerings and our vibrant arts scene. But the arts don’t just happen in Wilmington; they are cultivated here—‘cared’ for, starting at a young age. The Delaware Institute for the Arts in Education (DiAE) is a Wilmington-based, non-profit organization that is doing its part to nurture the arts in Delaware...