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Philly Power Research

@researchphilly.bsky.social
642 followers 368 following 102 posts

PPR is a group of volunteer researchers investigating our city's most powerful people, corporations, and organizations.

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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 22/09/2026
There are at least 300 Flock or similar AI-backed surveillance cameras within ten miles of our city. They’re weaponized by ICE to kidnap our neighbors, abused by police forces to stalk their exes, and put everyone’s privacy at risk. Thurs. morning @ City Hall: tell City Council to ban Flock
Graphic with images of Flock cameras and text "Tell City Council: Ban Flock & moratorium now! Sep. 24 2026, 8:30AM-12PM, City Hall 4th Floor. Philly.my/flock-council, No Data Centers in Philly"
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jennifer kates @jenniferkates.bsky.social · 12/09/2026
It’s our air, our lives, and our city — we should decide 🦅 Two potential data center sites have already been identified in Philly—but the city has no rules to protect communities. We're rallying on 9/14 to demand City Council press PAUSE on data center development. Join us at philly.my/sep14rally
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Yakov Feygin @buddyyakov.bsky.social · 09/09/2026
Interesting paper just dropped in the great data center debate and it's not great news. Data centers seem to raise the yields on local govt debt since they have a very low long term multiplier and large perceived externalities on public infrastructure. papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers....
papers.ssrn.com
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Jake Blumgart @jblumgart.bsky.social · 03/09/2026
"As progressives have toppled centrist Democrats in nationally watched races, some local development interests are wary that the same trend could reshape Philadelphia City Council this spring, when every member is up for reelection." www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
inquirer.com
Philly developers are planning a $1.5M campaign to protect City Council from progressive challengers
Philly For Growth, a super PAC backed by the city's development interests, wants to keep progressives from growing their power on City Council.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
The current School District leadership acts like it is allergic to any kind of bad news. Trying to bury or conceal bad news instead of looking at it candidly and transparently does a disservice to students, teachers, and families. www.chalkbeat.org/philadelphia...
chalkbeat.org
Philly teachers usually get state test scores over the summer. This year, they’re still waiting
District officials say the state put the scores on hold. But a state message says the district has had preliminary results since June.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 20/08/2026
Seems like Geeting at this point is just shilling for any kind of construction (incl. data centers), regardless of environmental impact or effect on housing supply. He, Ali Perelman (who comes from a wealthy gas industry family) & co. rebranded Philadelphia 3.0 as "Build Philly Now" a couple yrs ago
Screeshot from @jongeeting twitter posts: "The data center people lost the PR war pretty much immediately so I get why Shapiro has to do this, but it genuinely sucks that this is one of the only good economic stories for Pennsylvania (lots of emptiness and nat resource wealth) in years but we have to pretend like it’s bad. PA’s economic and geological properties were kinda made for this moment but even the most pro-growth among us are getting socially shamed into saying it’s bad by the completely insane zeitgeist around this stuff. Sad times"
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Larry Feinberg @lfeinberg.bsky.social · 25/07/2026
Commonwealth Charter Academy expands real estate footprint into Philly with Navy Yard site | PhillyVoice www.phillyvoice.com/commonwealth...
phillyvoice.com
Pa.'s largest cyber charter school expands real estate footprint into Philly
Commonwealth Charter Academy acquires a 32,000-square-foot Navy Yard building for staff offices and a center for students.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 17/07/2026
"Public response to the Planning Commission’s report was wholly oppositional to data centers. No one spoke in favor." www.inquirer.com/real-estate/...
inquirer.com
Planning Commission considers how — and if — data centers should be built in Philly
While no data centers have been proposed in Philadelphia, city planners are preparing for the debate to come.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 15/07/2026
Interesting look behind the scenes in Bob Brady's failing leadership of the Philly Democratic Party byclaudiavargas.substack.com/p/inside-phi...
byclaudiavargas.substack.com
Inside Philadelphia's Democratic Machine
How Bob Brady has held together one of America's last urban political machines — and why its future matters beyond Philadelphia.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
In a year when Philly's hospitality sector is surely going to see great profits from World Cup, Semiquincentennial, etc., City Council chose to axe $20 million for homeless services that Parker proposed funding through increased taxes on hotels & short-term rentals. www.inquirer.com/politics/phi...
Screenshot from linked Inquirer article: "Council members also rejected Parker's plan to increase funding for pothole repairs by imposing a 25-cent-per-order tax on retail delivery services like GoPuff and Amazon, and they killed her plan to increase the city hotel tax and a tax on short-term rentals like Airbnb and Vrbo to fund homeless prevention services."
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Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg @danua.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
PHILLY (anywhere from 41 to 33% of Bluesky): Are you curious why the school district budget continues to be in crisis? Want to know how to avoid laying off reading teachers in the middle of a literacy crisis? Wednesday at 5pm, a smarter person than me will explain. RSVP here: luma.com/e7cgfzb8
Flyer text from People's Budget Office.

Learn how Philadelphia schools are funded and why they are at risk of big cuts in this year's budget. *Where does the School District's deficit come from? What will it take to repair all our city's aging school buildings? Why do public schools still not have enough money after winning a historic lawsuit? Who's actually in charge of schools?*  Join us for a session to learn all about the School District's $5 billion budget, why schools are still underfunded, and how you can engage in the budget process to make sure schools get the resources they need to safely educate kids.
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Stephen Caruso @stephenjcaruso.bsky.social · 18/05/2026
Have you noticed a deluge of ads bashing or venerating candidates running for state legislature? If so, you are witness to a slugfest between gambling interests with big implications for who calls the shots in Harrisburg. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/05...
spotlightpa.org
Gambling interests pour millions into key PA Senate primaries
Sports betting and skill games interests have spent more than $8 million in PA Senate primaries, with opposite goals.
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Will Bunch @willbunch.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
A Pa. grassroots activist and a flurry of right-to-know requests has the receipts on Josh Shapiro's cozy relationship with Amazon as its $20B push for energy-guzzling data centers angers locals Did Amazon deliver a blow to Shapiro's White House dreams? My new column www.inquirer.com/opinion/tech...
inquirer.com
Did Amazon just deliver a blow to Josh Shapiro’s White House dreams? | Will Bunch
As public revolts against data centers, emails expose cozy relationship between a tech giant and Pennsylvania’s governor.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
New @mapthepower.bsky.social and ACRE report found that "the largest beneficiary of the [EITC and OSTC] school voucher tax credit programs is a company led by the state’s richest man and prolific school privatization advocate, billionaire Jeff Yass" littlesis.org/reports/comp...
littlesis.org
Companies run by Pennsylvania billionaires among top recipients of state's school voucher tax credit program - Little Sis
Top beneficiaries of the tax credit include entities led by Jeffrey Yass, Joel Greenberg, and Arthur Dantchik of Susquehanna Investment Group
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 30/04/2026
The sadly ironic part of this circus is that a major cause of the School District facilities dilemma is the exodus of students to charter schools. Some of the loudest Council critics of the school board like Isaiah Thomas have also been supporters of charterization. www.inquirer.com/education/li...
inquirer.com
School board shifts meeting to virtual format after City Council protests
The Philadelphia school board plans to vote Thursday on a facilities plan that includes closing 17 public schools. Lawmakers and advocates showed up to protest in an effort to shut down the meeting.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 23/04/2026
Latest filing by 314 Action Fund, the Super PAC supporting Ala Stanford, shows a $500k contribution from a mysterious "Kimbark Foundation" on 3/9/26. The "foundation" just filed its incorporation on 12/19/25. Seems highly sus as possible AIPAC pass-through. 1/ docquery.fec.gov/cgi-bin/form...
Screenshot of Bizapedia page from Kimbark Foundation with text:

"Company Overview: Kimbark Foundation is a Domestic Corporation organized under the laws of the State of Delaware. The business was filed on December 19, 2025 and is currently listed as Active with the Delaware Secretary of State. The official file number for this entity is 10446337.

The Registered Agent on file is Cogency Global Inc., located at 850 New Burton Road Suite 201 Dover, DE 19904."

https://www.bizapedia.com/de/kimbark-foundation.html
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Dan Urevick-Ackelsberg @danua.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
Here in Philadelphia, Uber, your friendly neighborhood monopolist, is blanketing the city with ads to stop a rideshare tax that would prevent cuts to 340 School District of Philadelphia teachers, reading and math specialists, counselors, and more.
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Amistad Law Project @amistadlaw.bsky.social · 20/04/2026
A budget is a moral document! In an op-ed for @inquirer.com, Amistad's Co-ED, Nikki Grant, and Vivian Chang of Asian Americans United call on Mayor Cherelle Parker to show up for Philadelphians with the financial investments our communities need to survive. www.inquirer.com/opinion/comm...
inquirer.com
Philly needs a budget that reflects our grim reality | Opinion
Federal assaults and continued disinvestment threaten the city. Mayor Parker’s fiscal plan does not adequately address these issues.
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Larry Feinberg @lfeinberg.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
The PA Governor's money race: Garrity's top donor to date is University City Housing Co., a real estate firm owned by Michael Karp, who is also the founder of a West Philadelphia charter school www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/04... via @SpotlightPA
spotlightpa.org
PA governor’s race: See how much the candidates have raised
Explore how much money Democrat Josh Shapiro and Republican Stacy Garrity have raised in their campaigns for PA governor.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 02/04/2026
We demand a city free from Trump’s deportations, fear & violence. ICE Out bills put our values into law & prioritize immigrant communities' safety. Show up Mon. 4/13 for Council hearing & 1st vote to demand no city $, personnel, data or space be used to help ICE! RSVP www.mobilize.us/ndwa-c3/even...
Image with text: "Philly says ICE out! City Council hearing + first vote: Monday April 13, 10am-5pm, City Hall, Room 400. Lunch provided. Caucus lobby: Thursday April 9, meet at 8:30am, City Hall, Room 400"Imagen con texto: "Philly dice fuera ICE! Audiencia en la alcaldía y primer voto: lunes 13 de abril, 10am-5pm, Alcaldía, cuarto 400. Habrá almuerzo. Día de cabildeo: jueves 9 de abril, nos reunimos: 8:30. Alcaldía, cuarto 400."
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LittleSis @mapthepower.bsky.social · 10/03/2026
From airlines to telecommunications to construction and engineering, a host of private, for-profit businesses are cashing in on the Trump administration’s violent crackdown on immigrants. Join us for this training on the 26th to learn how to research ICE contracts. littlesis.org/training/res...
Researching ICE contracts, March 26, 2026, 7pm-8:30pm ET. Learn how to use the USASpending database to find out who has contracts with ICE and how much they are making off of the detention and deportation machine. Register: littlesis.org/trainings/ [case sensitive link in all lower case]. The LittleSis logo is pictured on the bottom right corner. A screenshot of a power map depicting the various corporate connections of the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is pictured at the center of the graphic. The background is black and the text is red and white.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 13/02/2026
"Garrity’s single biggest donation was $250,000 from University City Housing Co., a real estate firm providing housing near Drexel and the University of Pennsylvania." www.inquirer.com/politics/pen...
inquirer.com
Big-money and out-of-state donors helped Josh Shapiro raise $30 million while Stacy Garrity raised $1.5 million from Pa.’s grassroots
The Inquirer analyzed the candidates' latest campaign finance filings to find who — and how much money — is pouring into the Pennsylvania governor's race.
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Stephen Caruso @stephenjcaruso.bsky.social · 12/02/2026
What does collaboration with ICE look like in PA? ICE can access state data without a warrant. Troopers cannot ask about immigration status, but can and do tell ICE if they otherwise discover someone is undocumented. And prisons honor some ICE detainers. www.spotlightpa.org/news/2026/02...
spotlightpa.org
How PA agencies under Shapiro’s control cooperate with ICE
Gov. Josh Shapiro has not hidden that PA works with ICE, nor has he promised new limits on existing cooperation.
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Kim Kelly @kimkelly.bsky.social · 11/02/2026
The Parker administration is failing so many of our most vulnerable neighbors while hanging our overworked, underpaid library workers out to dry www.inquirer.com/news/philade...
inquirer.com
Library warming centers strained workers and left people without help for complex issues, staff say
Library workers and volunteers say people in mental-health crises, struggling with substance-abuse issues, and requiring wound care are coming to the warming centers and they have no backup.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 02/02/2026
Reminder that the Parker admin chose to allow this tax hike for small businesses rather than trying to defend against a lawsuit challenging the BIRT exemption. But the people most to blame for rising taxes for Philly small businesses are the PA Republicans who refuse to change the uniformity clause.
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Philadelphia Inquirer @inquirer.com · 27/01/2026
Two Philadelphia City Council members will introduce legislation this week to restrict cooperation with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. The push comes as ICE faces mounting national scrutiny over its tactics in Minneapolis.
inquirer.com
Philly lawmakers want to restrict cooperation with ICE and ban agents from wearing masks
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Bolts @boltsmag.org · 27/01/2026
Despite several attempts to export the idea, Seattle remains the only U.S. city with a democracy vouchers program, which provides money to residents to donate to the local candidates of their choice.
boltsmag.org
Seattle Renews Its Unique Approach to Public Campaign Financing
The democracy vouchers program hands residents $100 to donate to local candidates and it’s credited with broadening civic involvement. Voters on Tuesday extended it by 10 years.
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David Lapp @davidlapp.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
Pretty consistent with the last round of disparate school closings in Philadelphia
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LittleSis @mapthepower.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
Level up your data analysis skills at our new mini-training series! We’ll feature a few intro-level tips and tricks to get you started cleaning, combining and understanding data. Register: littlesis.org/trainings/
from the excel sheets into the streets: data analysis skills for action.
Excel for Organizers, Part 1, February 11, 2026 1 pm to 2 pm ET. Geared towards those organizers just getting started with spreadsheets.
Excel for Organizers, Part 2, March 11, 2026 1 pm to 2 pm ET. Builds on the first training to provide an overview of how to use formulas for data analysis.
Level up your data analysis skills at our new mini-training series!
Register: littlesis.org/trainings/ [link in all lower case letters].
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
Philadelphians demand a city free from Trump’s deportations, fear and violence. The ICE Out legislation puts our values into law and prioritizes the safety of immigrant communities. Show up Tuesday to launch this legislation and get ICE out of our city! RSVP here: www.mobilize.us/ndwa-c3/even...
mobilize.us
NDWA PA - ICE Out of Philly! · National Domestic Workers Alliance C3
This week, ICE Out legislation will be introduced at Philadelphia City Hall, led by Philly immigrant communities and Councilmembers Kendra Brooks and Rue Landau. Join us outside of City Hall, Tuesday...
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pnwpolicyangel aka Angelita 👼 @pnwpolicyangel.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
TikTok has been under new leadership for like a day and I made a slideshow with posts from the ICE rally today and it immediately got out under review and is not being published. Incredible.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 26/01/2026
"The group of investors that officially bought TikTok’s US assets includes an affiliate of Susquehanna International Group, the Pennsylvania investment giant owned by billionaire Jeff Yass, which will gain a spot on the spinoff venture’s board." technical.ly/entrepreneur...
technical.ly
The firm owned by Pennsylvania’s richest man is now co-leading US TikTok
Financial powerhouse Susquehanna International Group, an early ByteDance investor, is now central to the app’s new US leadership.
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Brett "Solidarity 2026" Banditelli @banditelli.org · 25/01/2026
"The American version of the Nuremberg Trials are coming for ICE, and ICE should be afraid. And until they happen, the poets, the helpers, the nurses, the educators, the mothers will be sharing, recording, and watching." thank you @spfelocal28.bsky.social
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Larry Feinberg @lfeinberg.bsky.social · 24/01/2026
The firm owned by Jeff Yass, Pennsylvania’s richest man, is now co-leading US TikTok Financial powerhouse Susquehanna International Group, an early ByteDance investor, is now central to the app’s new US leadership. technical.ly/entrepreneur...
technical.ly
The firm owned by Pennsylvania’s richest man is now co-leading US TikTok
Financial powerhouse Susquehanna International Group, an early ByteDance investor, is now central to the app’s new US leadership.
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Kristen Graham @newskag.bsky.social · 22/01/2026
20 #PHLed schools would close, 6 would co-locate, and 159 get upgrades under the long-awaited facilities master plan proposed by Supt. Watlington today. More: www.inquirer.com/education/ph...
inquirer.com
Philly could close 20 schools, co-locate 6, and modernize 159: Superintendent Watlington shares his facilities plan
The 10-year blueprint comes with a $2.8 billion price tag, $1 billion of which would be covered by district capital funds. The rest would depend on philanthropy or state funds.
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LittleSis @mapthepower.bsky.social · 21/01/2026
Check out our latest post: Six Steps for Researching the Corporate Enablers of ICE We briefly highlight a few campaigns that are targeting ICE’s corporate collaborators and provide a guide on how you can research these corporations. littlesis.org/news/six-ste...
Six Steps for Researching the Corporate Enablers of ICE, By Lauren Parker. Communities are forming campaigns to peel away corporate support of ICE and weaken the various sources of ICE’s financial, political, and reputational power. White text on a black background. The background fades into an image of protesters standing behind a long banner that they are holding up at the front of a conference room. The banner reads, “Stop Avelo, Abolish ICE,” and shows the image of a woman with a baby and a blue collar worker with his fist up, a monarch butterfly is pictured on either side of these two characters. The bottom left side of the graphic reads, Read the full story at: littlesis.org/research/news/ [the link is in all lower case letters]. The bottom right side of the graphic shows the LittleSis logo in white.
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MuckRock @muckrock.com · 20/01/2026
The Philly Transit Riders Union used DocumentCloud’s annotation feature to highlight public documents with their members and share them with local reporters and the public. Join us on Friday to learn more during our Building with MuckRock event. us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regi...
us02web.zoom.us
Building with MuckRock
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 20/01/2026
Any expressions of concern about ICE from the @mayorparker.bsky.social administration are meaningless if they're allowing Philly police to actively assist ICE.
Screenshot from Inquirer article with headline "ICE vehicle able to exit garage, helped by Philly police", a picture of police officers standing between a white vehicle and protesters, and text "Just before 9:30 a.m., a white sedan – which had initially been blocked by protesters – was able to exit the ICE headquarters parking bay with the help of Philadelphia Police. No one was arrested."
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Will Bunch @willbunch.bsky.social · 16/01/2026
Demand that the Philadelphia Parking Authority (PPA) cut its ties to ICE
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winston @winston.cc · 11/01/2026
Please understand this is happening in literally dozens of locations around the city simultaneously. If an ICE vehicle stops, community members materialize in seconds and do everything they can to stop the kidnappings. We are under siege and using every tool to fight back.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 11/01/2026
A quick search on LinkedIn turns up hundreds of people who work for 🧊. People should message them to tell them to quit their jobs. And shame them in front of their communities.
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Jake Blumgart @jblumgart.bsky.social · 10/01/2026
Perhaps do a little background research before turning someone into a resistance icon. www.inquirer.com/topic/rochel...
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Sterling K Johnson @lbsterlingjo.bsky.social · 29/12/2025
Hello, is it possible to share this fundraiser? Kensington Voice is the only reason we know about so many things that are happening in Kensington neighborhood in Philadelphia. Is it possible to share and retweet? @olufemiotaiwo.bsky.social www.kensingtonvoice.com/kensington-j...
kensingtonvoice.com
Help Kensington Voice start 2026 at full strength. Because local news doesn't fund itself.
Every dollar donated supports an act of journalism.
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Emily Rizzo @emilykrizzo.bsky.social · 16/12/2025
I work for the only news org reporting on Kensington from the inside. We hold power accountable, and center solutions and community voices. But we need help to stay running after January. If you've appreciated our work, please consider donating: www.kensingtonvoice.com/kensington-j...
kensingtonvoice.com
Help Kensington Voice start 2026 at full strength. Local news doesn't fund itself.
Every dollar donated supports an act of journalism.
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Larry Feinberg @lfeinberg.bsky.social · 13/12/2025
This Philly charter awarded a big contract to a board member’s friend, then punished the official who reported it, a lawsuit says www.inquirer.com/education/al... via @phillyinquirer
inquirer.com
This Philly charter awarded a big contract to a board member’s friend, then punished the official who reported it, a lawsuit says
The school's business manager raised enrollment, payroll, privacy and tax issues with his managers, after which he experienced ‘increasingly hostile and retaliatory conduct,” a lawsuit says.
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Mark Andrew Price @pricelaborecon.bsky.social · 05/12/2025
Pennsylvania’s libertarian billionaire lands a big profile in the WaPo. wapo.st/4iOU6Ph
wapo.st
Meet the billionaire pushing taxpayer-funded school vouchers
How one of the richest people on the planet presses his pet issue: school choice
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Philadelphia Federation of Teachers (PFT Local 3) @pft.org · 02/12/2025
👀 "The lawsuit is applying the Commonwealth Court’s 2023 decision that students have a constitutional right to an adequate education.... If successful, some of the arguments in this new lawsuit could be used against other cyber charter schools in the future." www.pennlive.com/education/20...
pennlive.com
Pittsburgh Public Schools and Pa.’s largest cyber charter school clash over lawsuit
The lawsuit argues the district shouldn’t have to fund a cyber school that is performing poorly, while Commonwealth Charter Academy says Pittsburgh is failing its own students.
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 02/12/2025
Philly could be doing this too, but instead we have cyber charters running ads on SEPTA buses
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Philly Power Research @researchphilly.bsky.social · 26/11/2025
"Defeating Communism" SuperPAC pissing off PA GOP legislators via attack ads criticizing GOP for considering taxes on "skill games" gambling. Sen. Bartolotta: "[Skills game lobby is] acting like criminals. And I don't know what in the world they think this is going to do to engender our support" 🍿
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Ence Morse @ence.bsky.social · 21/11/2025
We spent a year investigating billionaires for @washingtonpost.com. We found: the wealthiest 100 Americans gave $1.1 billion to influence the 2024 elections — 140x more than they did in 2000. And almost all of that giving boosted Republicans. washingtonpost.com/politics/int...
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