August 27, 2008 
The Delmarva Education Foundation -- A Bridge Between The business & Education Communities
HomeAbout DEFScholarships & AidContribute to DEFProjectsContact Us

What is DEF?

What is the Delmarva Education Foundation?
The Delmarva Education Foundation (DEF) is a framework for the solution of educational problems on a regional basis. We are located in Salisbury, Maryland, the economic trading center for the seven counties of the Lower Delmarva Peninsula: Dorchester, Somerset, Wicomico and Worcester counties in Maryland; Accomack and Northampton counties in Virginia; and Sussex County, Delaware. The State Departments of Education serve their own school systems, be it by county or district. DEF unites all these systems by crossing state lines and serving these predominately rural counties as one educational region because those of us in this region have more in common with each other than with those in our respective state capitals or urban centers.

The educational entities in these counties include fourteen public school systems (each with a local board of education and superintendent), numerous private schools, seven higher-degree-granting universities, four community colleges, homeschool associations and many other trade, tutoring and continuing education organizations.

What is our Mission?
Our mission is to improve educational opportunities for residents of the Lower Delmarva Peninsula using a regional approach to facilitate accessibility, quality, and effectiveness of education for all ages.

DEF chartered in Maryland in 1999 as a 501c(3) nonprofit organization, and started providing services in 2000.