Delaware

Delaware’s fastest: The 30 greatest high school distance runners in First State history

Published

2 years ago

February 8, 2024

Delaware’s fastest: The 30 greatest high school distance runners in First State history

At one point, when I was researching 1970s Newark harriers John Greenplate and Jim Bray, I unearthed a quote in The Morning News that has been rattling around in my head ever since.

“When a runner feels he’s getting tired his mind tells him to stop running before his body does. A disciplined runner will tell himself I’m going to keep running, running, running,” Newark coach Ray Ciesinski said in 1972. “John Greenplate, the greatest runner I ever had, proved this fact over and over again. He punished himself severely in practice. Ran 100 miles a week preparing himself for a 2-mile race. The only guy who could beat him had to practice running 110 miles a week.”

Ciesinski’s praise of Greenplate functioned as a reminder of what makes the runners on the list that follows exceptional: their extraordinary commitment and toughness. In a sport often prescribed as punishment both traits are prerequisites to greatness. Talent plays a role, but no one on this list, which marks the 30 greatest high school distance runners in Delaware history, set themselves apart on talent alone.

Some athletes were rewarded with a spot on the list for rare feats and record times. Others for sustained periods of success. Many for both. Some will disagree with the contents and the order of the list and that’s ok. Lists of this nature are written to be disagreed with. I hope you’ll see the project as an attempt, in some way, to tell the story of the sport of running in Delaware through its greatest figures.

30. Stephen Garrett, Tatnall, 2015

⌚ 3rd all-time 3,200 meters (9:04.48), 4th cross country 5k (15:09.2), 17th 1,600 meters (4:15.87)

🏆 Co-cross country state MVP in 2014

🥇 Won 3,200 meters at 2013 and 2014 Meet of Champions

Perhaps no one in Delaware history started their high school running career with higher expectations than Garrett. As an eighth grader competing on the high school team, Garrett had already placed 10th at the state cross country meet and fifth in the 1,600 outdoors in a blazing 4:23.79, a time eclipsed to this day by only 78 runners.

One of five runners to be awarded first team all-state in cross country four times, Garrett delivered on that promise. He contributed to six team championships, including four in cross country.

29. Jarod Wilson, Newark, 2015

⌚ 4th all-time 800 meters (1:52.04), 9th 1,600 meters (4:13.93)

🏆 2015 indoor track and field state MVP

Wilson was one of the most versatile runners in Delaware history, a two-time first team All-State cross country runner who once clocked a hand-timed 22.4 200-meter sprint from a standing start. He had one of Delaware’s most memorable individual performances at the 2015 New Castle County track and field championships.

Wilson anchored Newark’s 4×800 relay in 1:49.7, the fastest recorded 800-meter relay split on Delaware’s all time performance list. He placed second in the fastest 1,600 race in Delaware history with a school-record time and at that point the fifth-fastest time ever. Later that day, he split 48.3 as the anchor leg of Newark’s winning 4×400 relay.

28. Mike Kowal, Salesianum, 2005

🏆 2005 outdoor track and field state MVP

🥇 2004 DI cross country champion, 2 Meet of Champions wins

Kowal anchored the fastest 4×800 relay in Delaware history, Salesianum’s fifth-place national finish in 2005 (7:43.80). At the state meet that year, Kowal won the 800, placed second in the 400 and anchored the winning 4×400 relay. He was only the third male distance runner to earn spring MVP honors. Salesianum won eight team state championships in Kowal’s career.

27. Anthony Stewart, Delcastle, 1990

🏆 Cross country, indoor and outdoor track and field state MVP in 1989-1990 academic year

⌚ 16th all-time 1,600 meters (4:15.00)

In 1990, Stewart became the first Delaware runner to sweep the state MVP awards across the three running seasons. He was one of several standout Delcastle distance runners in his era. A state committee in 1990 labeled Stewart’s 1989 cross country state meet win over teammate Cornelius Jones the race of the decade.

26. Tom Gottemoller, Salesianum, 1972

⌚ T-11th all-time 1,600 meters (4:14.33*), 13th 800 meters (1:53.84*)

🥇 Won 880 yards and mile at the 1972 Meet of Champions

Gottemoller originally aspired to be a football player before becoming part of an early 1970s group that reset expectations for Delaware distance running. Gottemoller set the state record in the 880 yards (1:54.4) at the Delaware Valley Meet of Champions in Philadelphia in his final high school race. Weeks earlier, he was out-leaned by Newark’s Jim Bray for the New Castle County Championship and state record in the mile.

25. Julie Williams, Tatnall, 2013

⌚ 4th all-time 1,600 meters (4:49.69), 6th 3,200 meters (10:37.64)

⌚ Member of Tatnall’s state record 4×800-meter, distance medley and 4×1,600-meter relay teams

Williams is one of only four girls inside the current top 10 in two individual distance events on Delaware’s all time performance list. She was a critical member of nationally-ranked Tatnall squads in the early 2010s. Williams earned All-American honors her senior year, placing fifth in the mile at the national high school championship meet.

24. Michael Keehan, Salesianum, 2019

⌚ 4th all-time 3,200 meters (9:05.06), 5th cross country 5k (15:15.9), 7th 1,600 meters (4:13.78)

🥇 2 individual cross country state titles, 3 individual outdoor track titles

Keehan posted the fastest times across 1,600, 3,200 and 5,000 meters of a procession of strong Sals front runners that have led the school to 12 of the last 15 Division I cross country titles. In 2023 as a Penn Quaker, he became the third Delawarean to break four minutes in the mile.

23. Meredith Lambert, Tatnall, 2002

🏆 2-time cross country state MVP

🥇 2000 DII cross country state champion, 3 individual outdoor track titles, 2 Meet of Champions wins

A soccer player through her junior year, Lambert joined Tatnall’s track and field team as a senior and won Division II state titles in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200. Her 10:50.26 3,200 personal best at the Twilight Relays was a state record.

22. Lance White, Cape Henlopen, 1978

🥇 2 individual cross country state titles, 4 individual outdoor track titles

Known for thrilling come-from-behind victories, White was the best distance runner of the late 1970s. He set multiple cross country course records, won three consecutive Henlopen Conference cross country championships and ran the state’s fastest metric mile (1,500 meters) when that was briefly the event of choice at the state meet.

One of White’s “finest performances,” as described by Morning News writer Jack Ireland, was his two mile win at the Civic Center in Philadelphia over a field of the area’s best runners. White uncorked a kick from about 300 yards out and finished in 9:29.5. Run on a 160-yard track, it remained Delaware’s top indoor time when converted to 3,200 meters until 2011.

“Lance has the utmost confidence in his kick,” Cape Henlopen coach Dave Frederick said after the race. “If you haven’t taken it out of him with about 300 yards to go, I haven’t seen anyone able to beat him.”

21. Jeff Brokaw, Tower Hill, 1968

🥇 3-time Group II cross country champion, 6 individual outdoor track state titles

Brokaw was one of Delaware’s first exceptional distance runners. He won the mile at the state meet four times, a feat no boy has replicated. He battled injuries his senior year, but rebounded in time to lower the state record. His time of 4:19.9 remained the state’s best for three years.

20. Brynn Crandell, Indian River, 2024

🏆 3-time cross country state MVP

⌚ 5th all-time cross country 5k (17:28), 11th 3,200 meters (10:46.04)

Crandell, the highest active runner on this list, this fall became just the fifth girl to have the best cross country state meet time in either division for three consecutive years. She plans to continue her running career next year at the University of Delaware.

19. Kevin Murray, Charter of Wilmington, 2016

⌚ 2nd all-time cross country 5k (15:06.8), 7th 3,200 meters (9:07.01), 14th 1,600 meters (4:14.80)

⌚ Course records at Bellevue, White Clay, Winterthur, Killens Pond

🏆 Cross country state MVP in 2015

Murray holds cross country course records at Bellevue, White Clay, Winterthur and Killens Pond, all set in a historic 2015 senior season. Murray won the county and state meets that year and lifted Charter to its first Division I cross country championship. His 15:06.8 at the Southeast Regionals was, at the time, a Delaware record.

18. Sam Parsons, Tatnall, 2012

⌚ State record for 3,200 meters (9:00.61), 5th all-time 1,600 meters (4:12.67)

🏆 Cross country state MVP in 2011

🥇 Swept the distance events and anchored Tatnall’s winning 4×800-meter relay in Division II at the 2012 state meet

Parsons helped usher in one of the fastest eras in Delaware high school distance running. When he ran 9:00.61 in the 3,200 in Arcadia, California in his senior track season in 2012 it was about 12 seconds faster than any Delaware high schooler had run. Six runners have since run under 9:10, but Parsons’ time remains the state record.

In 2022, running as a professional for Adidas and Tinman Elite, Parsons returned to the Tatnall track and staged the Delaware Mile Challenge, a quest to break four minutes in the mile for the first time on Delaware soil and a celebration of the distance event. Parsons won in 3:58.17.

17. Melissa Grubb, Concord, 1983

🥇 6 individual outdoor track titles, 6 Meet of Champions wins

⌚ 20th all-time 800 meters (2:14.80), 30th all-time 1,600 meters (5:01.50)

One of several stars in a golden age of track and field at Concord, Grubb lost only one individual race in three years of competition: the 800 at the New Castle County Championships in 1982. The following week at the state meet she responded by winning the 800 in a state record time.

16. Denise Marini, Padua, 1980

🥇 5 individual outdoor track state titles, 7 Meet of Champions wins

⌚ 13th all-time 3200 meters (10:49.38*), 22nd 1600 meters (4:59.67*)

Marini ran 10:04.7 to win the 3,000 at the 1980 Catholic Conference meet at Baynard Stadium, a mark that stood as the state record when converted to 3,200 for 39 years. She was the best in the state over 800 meters all four years of her high school career.

“I never really dreamed of winning four straight years,” Marini told The Morning News in 1980. “My whole life though is dedicated to running and I just eat, sleep and drink track.”

15. Jim Bray, Newark, 1972

⌚ T-11th all-time 1,600 meters (4:14.33*)

🥇 1972 DI mile champion

On May 22, 1972, The Morning News wrote that the “high school trackmen” had shown a “total lack of regard for records in the New Castle County Championship Meet at Alexis I. du Pont Saturday.”

The most enduring of the performances that day was Bray’s 4:15.7 mile state record. Bray trailed Salesianum’s Tom Gottemoller for the first three-fourths of the race, The Morning News noted, but the Yellowjacket nipped Gottemoller at the line by six inches. He took more than four seconds off the state record held at the time by Tower Hill’s Jeff Brokaw.

When Delaware started contesting the 1,600 in place of the mile in 1982, Bray’s performance converted to 4:14.33 was considered the fastest. It remained the state’s best time until 2006, 34 years from that day at A.I. du Pont.

14. John Greenplate, Newark, 1972

🥇 2 individual cross country state titles, 3 individual outdoor track titles

⌚ 19th all-time 3,200 meters (9:18.66*)

Perhaps no distance runner commanded more respect than the 5-foot-11, 136-pound Greenplate. He logged 12-15 miles a day, six days a week, The Morning News wrote in June 1972. In three years of racing, he set records on almost all of the cross country courses of the day — Rockford Park, Dickinson, William Penn and Polly Drummond Hill — and lost only once in the two mile. He graduated as the state record holder in the event indoors and outdoors.

Greenplate led Newark to its second cross country state championship in 1971, finishing 1-2 with teammate Jim Bray.

13. Dom Della Pelle, Salesianum, 2007

⌚ 4th all-time 1,600 meters (4:12.36), 23rd 3,200 meters (9:20.00)

⌚ Member of Salesianum’s state record 4×800-meter relay team

🥇 2005 DI cross country state champion, 7 individual outdoor track titles

Della Pelle was the second boy in Delaware history to be named first team All-State in cross country four times and the first since 1970. He set state records in the 1,600 and 3,200, but watched Tatnall’s Brian Sklodowski break them in head-to-head races weeks later.

In 2006, he joined Salesianum’s Charlie Dielmann as the only runners to ever sweep the Division I 800, 1,600 and 3,200 at the state meet.

12. Keelin Hays, Tatnall, 2019

🥇 4 individual cross country titles, 9 individual outdoor track titles

⌚ 19th all-time 800 meters (2:14.89), 13th 1,600 meters (4:55.89), 12th 3,200 meters (10:47.21)

Hays went nine for nine in Division II in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 her first three seasons, a feat no one else has replicated. She is one of three runners to have won four cross country state titles.

Perhaps the signature race from Hays’ career came in the 2016 outdoor season when, as a freshman, she out-leaned Padua’s Lydia Olivere to win the 1,600 at the New Castle County Championships by .03 seconds. Also in the discussion is the 1,600 at the indoor state meet the following year where Hays beat Olivere by the same margin.

11. Anna Brousell, Brandywine, 2006

⌚ 17th all-time 1,600 meters (4:57.19), 22nd 3,200 meters (10:57.91)

🏆 3-time cross country state MVP

🥇 3 individual cross country state titles, 7 individual outdoor track titles and 2 Meet of Champions wins

Brousell, the first girl to win three Division I cross country state championships, graduated with course records at Bellevue, Brandywine Creek, Killens Pond and White Clay. She won the 1,600 in Division I at the state meet four times. The Delaware Track and Field Hall of Fame inducted Brousell in 2014.

10. Julie Macedo, Charter of Wilmington, 2012

⌚ Fastest cross country 5k (16:53.0), 5th all-time 3,200 meters (10:34.80)

⌚ Course records at Bellevue, White Clay; 2nd all-time at Killens Pond, Brandywine Creek

🏆 Cross country state MVP in 2011

When she ran the fastest cross country 5k in the country in 2011, Macedo was shocked. The senior was training through the September race, the Six Flags Invitational in New Jersey, and yet she became the first and only Delaware girl to have run under 17 minutes.

Macedo backed up that performance in the championship season, running 16:55, the nation’s second-fastest time, at the Joe O’Neill Invitational, winning the Blue Hen Conference championship by 90 seconds and taking her third straight Division I state title.

Macedo’s duels with Tatnall’s Haley Pierce, also one of the nation’s top runners in 2011, are remembered as some of the finest in Delaware history. Most memorably, they ran each other to exhaustion on the hills of Winterthur at the county meet that year. Running side by side Macedo and Pierce collapsed to the ground in the final straight and Tatnall’s Reagan Anderson took the win. The following week at the state championship at Killens Pond, Pierce and Macedo won separate races in near identical times of 17:28.19 and 17:28.93.

9. Connor Nisbet, Wilmington Friends, 2018

⌚ 3rd all-time 1,600 meters (4:12.21), 4th 3,200 meters (9:00.75), fastest cross country 5k (15:00.1)

🏆 3-time cross country state MVP, indoor and outdoor track and field state MVP in 2018

A total of 1.22 seconds stood between Nisbet and three state records in one of the most impressive outdoor track and field seasons in state history. The spring before he completed a three-year unbeaten streak of cross country running in Delaware, Nisbet finished .14 seconds off the 3,200 state record and .5 seconds off the 1,600 state record at the 2018 New Castle County Championships. Weeks earlier, he came within a second of the state’s fastest time across 3,000 meters in a second-place finish at Penn Relays.

A former nationally-ranked tennis player, Nisbet almost became the first Delaware high schooler to break 15 minutes in a cross country 5k, finishing the DISC Championships at St. Andrews in 15:00.1 the following fall.

8. Vicki Huber, Concord, 1985

⌚ 7th all-time 800 meters (2:11.90), 5th 1,600 meters (4:50.23*)

🥇 4 individual outdoor track titles and 1 Meet of Champions win

No Delawarean has reached greater heights in their post-high school running career than Huber, who came in ninth on Delaware Online/The News Journal’s 2021 ranking of the 100 most accomplished Delaware athletes of all time. At Villanova, Huber won eight NCAA titles and was twice recognized as the NCAA’s top track and field performer. She made two Olympic teams, placing sixth in the 3,000 in 1988. Huber placed fourth in the 1992 World Cross Country Championships. The Collegiate Athlete Hall of Fame inducted Huber in 2022.

In high school, Huber’s running pursuits were limited to the track: she was also an All-State field hockey player. Huber set state records in the 800 and 1600, breaking marks set a year prior by her teammate Melissa Grubb. Her personal bests remained state records for more than two decades.

7. Kieran Tuntivate, Charter of Wilmington, 2015

⌚ State record for 1,600 meters (4:11.71), 5th all-time 3,200 meters (9:06.30)

🥇 Cross country state champion in 2014, 3 Meet of Champions wins

🏆 Co-cross country state MVP in 2014, outdoor track and field state MVP in 2015

The defining win of Tuntivate’s storied high school career came against one of the deepest 1,600 fields ever assembled in Delaware at the New Castle County Championships at Baynard Stadium in 2015. With a blistering 56-second final lap, Tuntivate prevailed over five of his contemporaries who also made this list. His time of 4:11.71 stands as the state record is distance running’s signature event.

Following his high school career, Tuntivate became the second Delawarean to break four minutes in the mile while competing for Harvard and the first to do so indoors. Now a professional runner competing with Nike’s Bowerman Track Club, only 162 people have run a track 10k faster than Tuntivate’s 27:17.14 personal best.

6. Bruce Harris, Dover, 1985

⌚ State record for 800 meters (1:49.50*)

🥇 3-time DI 800-meter champion, 2-time DI 1,600-meter champion

At the end of Bruce Harris’ stellar junior track season, News Journal scribe Chuck Durante wrote words that have remained prescient, “On June 4, he set a state record that only he may ever break.” Harris never had a chance to break the record. He was ruled ineligible to compete his senior season, leaving the track and field world with an abundance of wonder.

But in the almost four decades since, no one in Delaware has run 800 meters faster than Harris. It is the longest standing Delaware state record in a distance event. At the time, Harris had surpassed any previous Delaware effort by nearly four seconds.

5. Reagan Anderson, Tatnall, 2013

⌚ State record for 800 meters (2:08.58), 2nd all-time 1,600 meters (4:42.95*), 7th cross country 5k (17:39.9)

⌚ Member of Tatnall’s state record 4×800-meter, distance medley and 4×1,600-meter relay teams

🥇 4-time winner of Meet of Champions 800

Simply put, Anderson owned the 800. At the Meet of Champions as a freshman, she bested KeAira Dickerson’s state record by .3 seconds. By the end of each of the next three years, she had cut seconds off of that time and stood atop the Meet of Champions podium. Five runners have entered the all-time top 10 for the 800 at various points in the last five years, but only one has come within two seconds of Anderson’s record.

4. Brian Sklodowski, Tatnall, 2007

⌚ 2nd all-time 1,600 meters (4:11.93), 13th 3,200 meters (9:16.80)

🏆 3-time cross country state MVP, 2-time outdoor track and field state MVP

🥇 First male to win 3 consecutive cross country state championships

Sklodowski graduated as the fastest boys distance runner in Delaware history, having set state records in the 1,600 and 3,200. He chased the times of legends in the sport — Jim Bray held the 1,600 record for 35 years and Eric Hamilton was the best at 3,200 for 24 years — but he also had to best his contemporary Dom Della Pelle.

In their junior season, Della Pelle broke Bray’s record at Penn Relays and entered Meet of Champions undefeated against Sklodowski. In that race, Sklodowski powered past Della Pelle with 75 meters to go and reset the record. It survived eight seasons.

The following year, Sklodowski beat Della Pelle to Hamilton’s 3200 record mid-season, but Della Pelle took it a week later. At Meet of Champions, Della Pelle fell off the pace early and Sklodowski won in another state record time. The Delaware Track and Field Hall of Fame inducted Sklodowski in 2023.

3. Juliet Bottorff, Tatnall, 2009

🏆 3-time cross country state MVP, 2009 indoor and outdoor track and field state MVP

⌚ 6th all-time 1,600 meters (4:51.03), 2nd all-time 3,200 meters (10:27.11)

🥇 3 individual cross country state titles, 5 individual outdoor track titles and 4 Meet of Champions wins

Bottorff left Tatnall as the standard bearer for Delaware distance running. The numbers were staggering. In 2009, she blew 22 seconds off Denise Marini’s 39-year-old state record in the 3200 and lowered Vicki Huber’s 25-year-old 1600 mark several seconds. Bottorff also ran on state record 4×800 and distance medley relay teams. In her senior year, she became the first girl and the second Delawarean ever to sweep the state MVP awards.

At Duke University, Bottorff won the 10k at the NCAA National Championships in 2011. She earned first-team All-American honors six times. The Delaware Track and Field Hall of Fame inducted Bottorff in 2022.

2. Lydia Olivere, Padua, 2018

🥇 Won 11 of 12 possible individual outdoor track titles in the 800, 1,600 and 3,200 meters

🏆 4-time cross country state MVP, 2018 indoor and outdoor track and field state MVP

⌚ 3rd all-time 1,600 meters (4:49.47), 3rd 3,200 meters (10:30.47), 2nd cross country 5k (17:02.0)

No one won more than Olivere. In her high school career, she lost just three cross country or track races in-state that were a mile or longer. Total, she won 30 state individual and relay titles, relinquishing only one individual outdoor distance event in her high school career, the 800 her freshman year. Olivere is the only Delaware high school runner to have won the state’s cross country MVP award four times.

At Villanova, Olivere set the school record in the steeplechase and competed in the 2021 U.S. Olympic Team Trials.

1. Haley Pierce, Tatnall, 2012

⌚ State records for 1,600 meters (4:41.19) and 3,200 meters (10:11.80)

⌚ Member of Tatnall’s state record 4×800-meter, distance medley and 4×1,600-meter relay teams

🥇 3 individual cross country state titles, 7 individual outdoor track titles and 5 Meet of Champions wins

Pierce reset the standards for Delaware high school distance running as she led the Hornets to national prominence. Tatnall placed as high as third at the national team cross country championships and set multiple national facility and meet records, including the DMR mark at the Penn Relays. Pierce also won the 3,000 at the Penn Relays in 2011 in the second-fastest time in the event’s history. She was known by her opponents and teammates as a gracious and selfless competitor, often eschewing attempts at personal glory for team success. Tatnall won 10 of a possible 12 team championships during Pierce’s career from 2008 to 2012. The duration and pinnacle of her success may never be matched.

Asterisks denote converted times as they appear on the state’s all time performance list. Wins at state individual finals (contested from 1977 to 1983) are considered Meet of Champions wins for accounting purposes as both are combined Division I and Division II competitions. A Meet of Champions was not contested between 1983 and 2001. Listed times are outdoor performances unless otherwise noted.

Contact Brandon Holveck at bholveck@delawareonline.com. Follow him on X and Instagram @holveck_brandon. Follow him on TikTok @bholveck.

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Delaware

Delaware education outlines boosts, program cuts – in a $2.5B budget

Published

3 hours ago

March 4, 2026

Press Room

Delaware education outlines boosts, program cuts – in a .5B budget

Delaware’s Department of Education has introduced its first strategic plan in a decade, alongside a proposed $2.5 billion budget.
The plan focuses on five key areas, including early education, teacher retention, literacy and funding reform.
A major school redistricting plan for northern New Castle County is expected to be delayed until the end of the calendar year.
Wilmington Learning Collaborative is one education program facing sharp possible cuts.

Delaware’s Department of Education unveiled its first “strategic plan” in a decade on March 3, as lawmakers sifted through its roughly $2.5 billion proposed budget.

That’s about one-third of the state’s draft spending plan, up nearly 4% from last year.

Lawmakers discussed those infusions – from reading support to early education and more – alongside some $22 million in various proposed program cuts, which could include lessened support for the Wilmington Learning Collaborative.

“It’s the first plan the Delaware Department of Education has had in at least a decade,” Secretary Cindy Marten said ahead of her remarks before the Joint Finance Committee. “There’s an opportunity here. This is not another initiative that we’re just going to layer on top of one more thing and one more thing. … We’re building on the capacity that’s already here.”

The department sculpted budget requests around five “building blocks” in this plan:

Bright beginnings: Expanding early education, with aims to raise early care enrollment from 25% to 40% by September 2028.
Safe supportive schools: Boosting teacher retention rates, with a goal to raise the three-year retention rate for all early career educators from 72% to 75% by June 2028, alongside reducing chronic absenteeism and more.
Great teaching and learning: That’s boosting early literacy, improving student achievement, growing graduation rates and college/career readiness. A key benchmark here is boosting third-grade reading proficiency from 38% to 53% by 2028.
Fair opportunities for every learner: DDOE leaders seek to implement a new public education funding model by August 2027, in step with the Public Education Funding Commission.
Families and communities as partners: The department intends to launch a family and community portal that enhances transparency and connection to learning tools, support and updates.

For Delaware state test scores, average English proficiency rates across all tested third to eighth graders came in at 41% in 2025, while math reaching 34%. Pre-pandemic 2019 scores remain around 10 points higher in each bucket.

On the Nation’s Report Card, scores released in 2025 revealed eighth grade reading scores had hit a 27-year low.

“It’s been decades where we have let that fall,” said committee Vice Chair Rep. Kim Williams, as statistics joined the budget hearing backdrop. “It took us decades to get where we’re at today. It’s going to take us some time to pull ourselves out.”

Literacy and Delaware’s youngest learners

The plan should sound pretty familiar.

Delaware’s “literacy emergency” has been an ongoing call from the Meyer administration. For Marten, a fixture benchmark is that third grade reading proficiency growing from 38% to 53% by 2028.

Alongside some $97.4 million proposed for state personnel cost, the department may also see one-time infusions of $8 million to maintain support for the “Literacy Emergency Fund” and $3 million in direct-to-teacher grants to fuel literacy gains.

Meanwhile, the plan calls for all K-3 teachers to complete professional learning in the science of reading, as mandated by Senate Bill 4 back in 2022.

The secretary also called early childhood education a “first priority” after a year of plan crafting.

Roughly $8 million in one-time spending could fuel the “Delaware Early Childhood Care & Education Alliance” next fiscal year. That’s a pilot “hub” to support child care providers across the state, while also fueling an estimated 480 additional seats in the state’s Early Childhood Assistance Program, per DDOE, or state-sponsored pre-K.

By fall 2028, the department aims to grow birth-to-five enrollment overall from 25% to 40%. She hopes a hub like this can simplify and consolidate the process for providers and families alike.

DDOE’s Office of Child Care Licensing has also been working to digitize electronic record systems to elevate the office’s public database, while tracking compliance and investigating complaints across Delaware’s licensed providers. A combined $2.4 million has been pledged to make it happen, in the last two years, and the department is aiming for launch this summer.

More investment lined budget spreadsheets, and lawmaker questions, as Marten and her team echoed back to their strategic plan. The department pledged to have regular, public reporting on the goals outlined.

After all, there’s much more to come.

Foundational funding change still in the works

To get anywhere, Marten said Delaware needs funding reform.

A one-time infusion of about $2.8 million is proposed to help launch a new funding formula, including support for public communication. So far, that pales in comparison to investment eyed by the Public Education Funding Commission’s hybrid model.

That model will tweak the state’s current unit-count system, while also adding a “weighted” approach based on student needs, as should be proposed to the General Assembly later this spring.

One commission work group projected a baseline infusion of roughly $70 million just to “hold harmless.” That’s allowing Delaware to launch a new formula, without taking existing funds away from school districts.

“That doesn’t bring us near adequacy,” said Commission Chair Sen. Laura Sturgeon, back in January. One independent research report recommended an infusion from $600 million to $1 billion in total.

While that infusion remains “the gold standard,” Sturgeon said, members think they can meaningfully implement the formula with less. She said a figure closer to $200 million has been in discussion, though nothing is final.

This reform will also likely be implemented in phases, if it clears the chambers above this JFC hearing room.

The next commission meeting is at 4 p.m. on March 16, online.

What didn’t make the cut?

The Wilmington Learning Collaborative was only listed on Meyer’s proposed DDOE spending plan as an $8 million cut.

The collaborative launched in 2022 under then-Gov. John Carney with aims to correct fractured education inside the state’s largest city, combating issues like low achievement, absenteeism and teacher retention. It fused across three school districts touching Wilmington – Red Clay, Brandywine and Christina – and pushed in programming and staff positions in about nine of their city schools.

DDOE initially described the reduction as “carryover” funds, aligned with recommendations from the governor. However, collaborative leadership said it likely wouldn’t shake out that way.

“We’re projecting a little less than $2 million carryover,” Laura Burgos said, moments after her presentation to the committee. That meets an allocation of $2 million eyed for next fiscal year, according to her presentation, compared to $10 million allocations in previous funding cycles.

“That’s still a significant reduction in total,” she continued. “But we’ll have a better idea as we reconcile the budget and see how far we go with our advancement of the STEM learning labs and better understand the number of students being served over the summer months.”

Burgos highlighted these projects and more in her presentation, while she expects more specifics on the funding cut impact to come in its council meeting, March 4.

In his questioning, Sen. Darius Brown pressed that the cut could end up being more than $6 million. In response, chair Sen. Trey Paradee said his committee could have more “conversations as a group” on those cuts, before final markup.

In Red Clay Consolidated School District alone, the collaborative fuels about a dozen teachers and five paraprofessionals, as the school board discussed in its February meeting. Burgos roughly estimated that investment at about $1 million in Red Clay.

Total impact is unclear, as local districts must consider covering positions in local budgets. The same is echoed in cuts to certain block grants.

The administration proposed cuts to a $2 million grant for substitute teachers and another $2.3 million for athletic trainers. Some districts will be able to pick up the cost locally, lawmakers noted, though the department was unable to speak to overall estimates Tuesday.

Sturgeon hopes coming reform will allow districts more flexibility for such coverage.

“What we’re moving toward is a system where all those positions will be able to be grouped together and then funded based on the priorities of the individual district,” she said.

Major redistricting effort signals further delay

The Redding Consortium – a coalition charged with improving education in and around Wilmington, as well as redistricting schools in the same boundaries – caught renewed attention in late 2025, as it voted to center planning on a consolidated district in northern New Castle County.

That’s a pending plan to convert Brandywine, Christina, Colonial and Red Clay into one school district, which would serve students from Newark to Wilmington and the suburbs north and west.

But that wasn’t the sole focus on March 3.

“Redistricting planning” has reflected about 1% of the group’s allocations in the past five years. Supports in student health centers, at $27.6 million, have made up 54% of that budgeting, while full-day pre-K support has seen about $14.8 million in the Wilmington area.

The consortium’s request this year remained consistent, as Majority Whip Sen. Elizabeth “Tizzy” Lockman said, at about $10.2 million.

But her colleagues should not expect a redistricting plan this session.

“Having reviewed the project scope, AIR’s best estimate for us is that putting together a thoughtful plan, with robust public input, will take the remainder of the calendar year,” the consortium co-chair said. “Again, we’re committed to delivering a robust proposal – but are very aware that students are in schools of concern every day and eager to see them better served.”

Olivia Montes covers state government and community impact for Delaware Online/The News Journal. If you have a tip or a story idea, reach out to her at omontes@delawareonline.com.

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Attention Ag Insurance Agents: Subsidy issues subject of Monday, March 9 virtual Q&A with USDA Risk Management Agency – State of Delaware News

Published

15 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

The Delaware Department of Agriculture is encouraging agricultural insurance agents to attend a virtual Q&A session with the USDA Risk Management Agency on crop insurance subsidy issues on Monday, March 9 at 2 p.m.

Crop insurance is a critical component of the farm safety net, protecting farmers from weather, environmental, and economic conditions that can result in low crop yields and income concerns.

The March 9 event is an important opportunity for Delaware agriculture representatives to receive answers and guidance before the First State’s peak planting and growing season begins.

“It is critical that Delaware agricultural insurance agents have all the facts before their clients make critical crop insurance decisions,” said Secretary of Agriculture Don Clifton. “In addition, we need input from crop insurance agents on the performance of the program in 2025 and how we can pursue more improvements.”

For the 2025 crop year, 318 Delaware policies received more than $3.45 million in Risk Management Agency loss payments out of more than 1,400 active policies statewide. In total, after all subsidies, Delaware policies received $1.03 for every $1 paid in premiums.

Agricultural insurance agents should contact Michael Lewis at michael.w.lewis@delaware.gov for direct meeting links and more details.

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Delaware eyes $25.3 million infusion to affordable child care. But to what end?

Published

1 day ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Delaware eyes .3 million infusion to affordable child care. But to what end?

Delaware is debating a $25.3 million investment into its state-subsidized child care program, known as Purchase of Care.
A potential federal rule change could require the state to pay providers based on enrollment rather than attendance, costing an estimated $25 million.
If the federal rule is dropped, officials propose using the funds to expand child care eligibility to more lower-income families.

Delaware child care has been a fixture of this budget season.

Gov. Matt Meyer pitched some $50 million toward early education in his proposed budget for next fiscal year. It included an $11.3 million federal grant to bolster systems, $8 million to pilot statewide hubs – and the largest piece in $25.3 million to boost Purchase of Care, or state-subsidized child care.

That line item proved a major talking point during a public health budget hearing in Legislative Hall on Monday, March 2, while connecting to broader visions for early childhood reform.

As it turns out, Delaware’s subsidized child care program in particular was already due to shoulder federal requirement changes dating back to the Biden administration. And those changes, effective April 1, could cost the state about $25 million to keep up.

That morning, lawmakers were briefed by the Delaware Department of Health and Social Services for more than three hours, before well over 50 public comments stretched late into the afternoon. Topics ranged from at-home care and centers supporting Delawareans with disabilities, to the ongoing strain of child care.

New Health Secretary Christen Linke Young said the Trump administration might drop these coming changes to pay providers based on child enrollment, before they’re effective.

And for Delaware, she would agree with that call.

Boosting Delaware child care, one way or the other

Purchase of Care is one program helping lower-income Delaware families – or those making below 200% of the federal poverty level, as of yet – afford care at various child care outfits across the state. Delaware pays those providers directly, around the end of the month, based on how many days these children attended.

Federal requirements could force states to change that.

Delaware would have to pay providers at the top of the month, based on their overall student enrollment, regardless of attendance. Young told lawmakers that would cost around $25 million each year, if requirements are not rescinded by the Trump administration.

It would mean more money for providers, she said, though also harsher policy needed around attendance expectations.

“If the federal government does change the rules, we need that full amount to shift to enrollment,” she said, addressing the Joint Finance Committee dais. “If not, our intention is to use it for increased eligibility.”

In other words, the administration hopes to invest about $25 million into this bucket either way. However, the health secretary said paying based on enrollment isn’t her recommendation.

Young told lawmakers the administration would rather see that amount infused into the program to expand eligibility to 250% of the federal poverty level. So, picture a family of three making roughly $80,000 would make the cut. No changes were proposed to co-payments or special education tiers.

This was met with mixed reviews.

“I’m sure some folks are going to have something to say about that,” cautioned Sen. Trey Paradee, committee chair.

For her part, Jamie Schneider was already editing her remarks in real time.

“Comments today suggested providers want to keep attendance-based payments instead of moving to enrollment-based payments,” said the interim executive director for Delaware Association for the Education of Young Children, representing some 900 early care providers. “That is inaccurate and I hope it’s a misunderstanding.”

Schneider welcomed the enrollment model, with “clear rules” to hold both providers and parents responsible. She and a handful of other speakers still also reinforced the necessity in bolstering the Purchase of Care program, from accessibility to reimbursement rates.

Some lawmakers hesitated on shifting away from enrollment boon for providers, while others pushed for attention on the benefits cliff. Meanwhile, child care became an economic discussion.

Is Delaware child care everyone’s business?

Some lawmakers did not care for this price tag, either way.

“So, there’s $25 million that will be saved because of this non-change, and you’re going to expand the program?” Sen. Dave Lawson posed to Young, while expressing concern for taxpayer dollars.

The secretary quickly turned to economic impact.

“Child care is expensive,” she said, in a portion of her remarks. “It is keeping people out of the workforce. It is posing an enormous burden on families and keeping them from making choices that they want to make, to participate in the economy, or to drive change.”

The Rodel Foundation released survey data in fall 2025 that would buttress these claims. The nonprofit is focused on public education and policy, with early childhood education as one pillar. At a glance:

About 92% of Delaware employers surveyed said child care challenges are hurting their employees, while some 76% reported such problems directly impact their business operations.
About 1 in 4 caregivers said they considered leaving Delaware because of child care challenges.
1 in 3 employers cited productivity declines, lost hours or services and staff turnover.
2 in 3 have seen their employees miss work, reduce hours or report absences at least monthly.
For parents, 1 in 3 reported turning down a job or promotion, cut hours or left work to meet child care demands.

“The cliff is real for me,” Sen. Eric Buckson said. “It disincentivizes individuals to climb out, and I’ve seen it work against folks.”

Purchase of Care’s “graduated phase out” level – often referred to as the “benefits cliff,” when eligibility runs up – would remain at 300%, according to DHSS budget documents and hearing remarks. It was unclear Monday if it would be solidified in more years to come.

There is a long runway ahead.

Untangling a bigger picture for Delaware child care

Sometimes Lt. Gov. Kyle Evans Gay describes the state of Delaware’s early childhood education system as the backside of an average desk. Tangled wires trace down the wall, with various colors and knots headed toward different outlets.

She’s been tapped to help straighten it up.

Named chair to the Interagency Resource Management Committee last year, Gay has overseen several Delaware departments as they centralize on early education. Those are state departments like Health and Social Services, Education, Services for Children, Youth and their Families and more.

The cross-agency group – with cabinet secretaries, agency leadership, lawmakers and the Delaware Early Childhood Council – landed a $11.3 million preschool development grant. Gay sees this next year ahead as setting the stage.

“That will go to projects in each of the agencies, as well as projects in my office,” the lieutenant governor said.

“And truly, with that money, we are building that investable system so that we can have information, including data about how to better serve Delawareans. We’re going to be building local infrastructure so that we can make sure that providers, educators, parents, have resources at their local levels.”

The former state senator and longtime advocate on child care issues sees a north star of early education as a universal, public good.

“But that’s an incredibly large project,” she said. “And it’s a big change from how we traditionally think about birth through 5.”

From exploring finance models to connecting public and private partners, this could be one step in that direction.

DDOE’s Office of Child Care Licensing has also been working to digitize electronic record systems to elevate the office’s public database, while tracking compliance and investigating complaints across Delaware’s licensed providers. A combined $2.4 million was pledged to make it happen, in the last two years, and it’s highly anticipated, Gay said.

The “Delaware Early Childhood Care & Education Alliance,” or likely hubs to the north and south, may also land an $8 million infusion to work across area providers and assist the state in expanding child care access, as outlined in the governor’s proposed budget.

A budget hearing on public education should bring more on that, Tuesday, March 3.

Got another education tip? Contact Kelly Powers at kepowers@usatodayco.com.

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