Rehoboth Art League Board of Trustees elects new president

The Rehoboth Art League Board of Trustees has elected a president to serve a two year term, Diana Coulton Beebe of Lewes.  She succeeds Marcia Dewitt who served as the board’s president for the past four years.

Beebe has been a lifelong educator and supporter of the arts, and has been a member of the Rehoboth Art League Board of Trustee for four years. Prior to her moving to the area full time, she was head of school at the Holton-Arms School, a position which she held for 15 years.  Beebe has held a number of leadership positions in educational organizations.  She served as the president of the National Coalition of Girls’ Schools, the National Association of Principals of Schools for Girls, and the Association of Maryland Independent Schools.  Most recently she has been a trustee of the Landon School in Bethesda, Md., and the Black Student Fund, in Washington, D.C.

Currently she serves as the executive director of the Headmistresses Association of the East, a national organization for the support and professional development of independent school heads.  She is also co-chairwoman for the Academic Council of the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in Lewes, and serves on the boards of the Lewes Historical Society and the Rehoboth Art League.   She holds a bachelor of arts degree in English from the College of Wooster and a masters degree in school leadership from the University of Tulsa.

In her first correspondence to the Rehoboth Art League membership she wrote, “The times have never been more challenging.  Funding for the arts is down in our educational institutions and everywhere else across the landscape.  It is increasingly important to champion the arts and educate young and old alike to understand the central role that the arts play in enriching our lives, feeding our souls and lifting our spirits.  They are central to the human experience, despite continuous efforts to marginalize their importance.”

“I am honored to follow in Marcia Dewitt’s footsteps.  Her leadership helped to raise the awareness of the permanent collection and the Art League’s historic contribution to art and culture in Southern Delaware,” said Beebe.  “The staff and volunteers at the art league have a true passion and commitment to the arts, and I look forward to working with them to deliver our mission to Southern Delaware.”