Lack of 8th grade algebra in Philly schools reinforces inequity
Masterman is considered Philadelphia’s premier high school, but many students don’t have a chance at getting in, even with the district’s revamped admission policies. Why? Eighth grade algebra is a requirement for admission, but many kids don’t get the opportunity to take it — not all Philly public schools offer the course.
In fact, the lower a neighborhood’s median income, the less likely algebra is available to district eighth graders, per a new analysis. Continue reading…
36 hours without a mayor? Parker’s swearing-in pushed back
The moment the calendar flips to Jan. 1, Cherelle Parker’s title will shift from mayor-elect to mayor. But she might technically be powerless, because her formal swearing-in is being delayed. This year, the first Monday of the month conflicts with the city’s New Year’s Day festivities, i.e. the Mummers Parade.
Parker could opt to take her oath in private, Meir Rinde reports, but there’s potentially a weird 36-hour gap at the end of Kenney’s term. Continue reading…
RECAP: What else happened?
$ = paywalled
• Employees at the South Street Starbucks have filed to decertify their union, Workers United. Stewards call the action part of a coordinated union busting effort, and the NLRB is contesting the petition. [KYW]
• Misha Galperin is stepping down after more than four years as CEO of the Weitzman Museum of American Jewish History, during which time he led the museum out of Chapter 11 bankruptcy. [WHYY]
• Protests demanding a ceasefire in Gaza continued in Philadelphia, with several hundred people gathering in Clark Park on Sunday and a couple hundred hosting a vigil at Penn’s LOVE statue on Monday. [Patch/Flickr/Daily Pennsylvanian]
• A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the Colored Girls Museum, open for nearly a decade in a three-story Victorian in Germantown, because the city says it needs zoning variances to continue operating. [BP 2020/WHYY’s PlanPhilly]
• In 1956, Philly officials proposed building 2,500 units of public housing across 21 developments. In the end, after decades of protests and legal wrangling, that proposal did not create a single unit of permanent public housing. [Billy Penn]
• In a deep dive inspired by Rob McElhenney’s “Welcome to Wrexham,” we learn Philadelphia apparently has a big Welsh background, and was almost named “New Wales” by William Penn. [BBC]
MAYOR WATCH
Nothing for the public to know about Mayor JFK’s schedule today. Over the weekend he wished a happy Diwali to people celebrating the Hindu festival of lights.
ON THE CALENDAR
🍻 Last BP Quizzo of the year! Our news and history trivia night lands in Germantown at Attic Brewing Co., with happy hour specials and prizes. Free with RSVP. (6:30 to 8:30 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 16)
🏠 Watch the premiere of a documentary interviewing six Hunting Park homeowners who received repairs through Philadelphia’s Built to Last program, followed by a Q&A. Free with RSVP. (6:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 15)
🪭Shuffle and flap over to the inaugural Brewerytown Tap Dance Festival, with classes for kids and adults of all levels, plus performances and showcase parties. (Friday to Sunday, Nov. 17-19)
Catch up on the previous week
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