IPA Researchers Develop Comprehensive Report on the Freeman Arts Pavilion

​The Institute for Public Administration (IPA), a research and public service center in the Joseph R. Biden, Jr. School of Public Policy and Administration, recently released the Comprehensive Impact Analysis of the Freeman Arts Pavilion. Troy Mix, IPA associate director, and Reidel Vichot, a graduate of the master of public administration program and current student in the urban affairs and public policy doctoral program, conducted this research as a follow up to the 2019 Comprehensive Impact Analysis of The Freeman Stage report. Both projects were sponsored by the Joshua M. Freeman Foundation to examine the economic and cultural impacts of programming held at the Freeman Arts Pavilion—and its predecessor The Freeman Stage—since performances started in 2008. The latest analysis covered the 15-year-long impact of the Freeman Arts Pavilion, which has accumulated over $101 million in economic contributions to the Sussex County economy and now accounts for approximately $18 million in annual spending countywide. Every dollar of direct spending by the Freeman Arts Pavilion over the 2008–22 period translated to $1.82 in total contributions to output in the Sussex County economy. In 2022 alone, Freeman Arts Pavilion contributed about $3.9 million in labor income for Sussex County residents. The Freeman Arts Pavilion is a performing arts venue near Fenwick Island, Delaware, that provides access to the arts for underserved and surrounding communities by providing diversified experiences through art, including dance, music, theatre and children’s programming. More than 91% of respondent program participants agree that Freeman Arts Pavilion has provided a space for positive community interaction and exposure to the arts in Sussex County and the region.​

Article by Sophonie Milord. Originally posted in UDaily's For the Record​.​​