SPS Technologies and its parent company reached a multimillion-dollar agreement last week to settle a class-action lawsuit stemming from the massive 2025 factory fire in Montgomery County that shuttered schools, halted SEPTA trains, and forced scores of nearby residents to evacuate.
The proposed agreement was announced on Friday by Kroll Settlement Administration, the firm handling the legal deal, which is pending before the county’s Court of Common Pleas.
If approved by the court, SPS Technologies and its owner, Precision Castparts Corp., would create a $5 million fund to provide cash payments to those impacted by the four-alarm blaze that erupted on Feb. 17, 2025, prompting officials to declare a disaster emergency.
“The plaintiffs allege that individuals and businesses were impacted, injured, or damaged by the fire,” Kroll Settlement Administration wrote in a news release. “SPS and PCC deny any wrongdoing.”
Under the proposed settlement, business owners, employees of impacted businesses, and homeowners within a 1-mile radius of the former factory in Abington Township could be eligible for payouts. The amounts would cover unreimbursed business losses of up to $5,000, unreimbursed property damage losses of up to $300, and unreimbursed hourly wage losses of up to $200, according to Kroll. Claim forms must be filed by Dec. 3.
Pending court approval, the proposed $5 million fund would also provide a maximum $1.75 million in “reasonable attorneys’ fees, costs, and expenses” and an extra payment of $2,500, known as a ”service award,” to lead plaintiffs in the class-action suit.
Last year, a judge agreed to consolidate three lawsuits into a single class-action suit. The lawsuits were brought against the aerospace parts manufacturer by a school bus driver for Abington School District, co-ownersof an auto service business that is less than a mile from the SPS facility, and a resident in neighboring Jenkintown whose apartment was engulfed in smoke and has experienced coughing and chest pain.
“The fire and explosion was caused by the defendant’s failures to inspect, properly maintain, and/or operate its facility, including the location of the origin of the fire,” according to the lawsuit. It also states that SPS “failed to uphold industry standards” in facility operations and as a result “hundreds if not thousands of persons have been damaged.”
The bus driver declined to comment on Sunday evening. The other class members did not return phone calls from a reporter, and their lawyers did not immediately respond to an email.
After a series of explosions at the Highland Avenue factory, fire engulfed the complex, drawing emergency responders from nearly 80 fire companies. Local officials ordered residents within a mile of the facility to shelter in place. A voluntary evacuation order for about 250 homes, mostly in neighboring Jenkintown, came soon after.
It took firefighters five days to extinguish the conflagration, while plumes of smoke drifted over the neighborhood, and residents worried about air quality because of the types of chemicals stored at the factory.
Villanova University’s campus was briefly under a lockdown Sunday evening as police searched for an attacker wanted in connection with a stabbing.
The lockdown was lifted at 6:41 p.m. after the suspect was apprehended off campus, according to the university’s alert system. The school issued the lockdown at 6:10 as a “precautionary measure due to the proximity of the search,” the alert said.
Authorities took the suspect into custody “without incident” in the 1000 block of East Lancaster Avenue, according to the post. An earlier alert from Villanova University said the person was armed.
“There is no threat to the community at this time, and all involved parties have been placed in custody,” Radnor police said on Facebook. “Our thoughts are with the victim and their family.”
The victim’s condition was not immediately known, and police did not identity the person in custody.
There’s something about a rookie who throws 100 mph that thrills a jam-packed crowd. In September, amid a tightening pennant race, it can overstimulate even the public-address announcer.
Over to you, Dan Baker.
“Now pitching for the Phillies … number 71 … Aaalexxx McFaaaaaaarlane!”
To be fair, there was juice in the ballpark as the eighth inning began Sunday. Aaron Nola got not three but five outs in the seventh to hold a one-run lead before Derek Hill and Kyle Schwarber homered, leaving the Phillies six outs from shaving the Braves’ division lead to three games.
Baker kicked in extra oomph only to suit the mood.
If only McFarlane had met the moment.
Instead, making his 12th major-league appearance, the 25-year-old righty gave up back-to-back one-out hits and a game-tying three-run homer to arms-flapping, stutter-stepping Ronald Acuña Jr. that exposed the Phillies’ most-glaring flaw and put a crimp in their chase for a third consecutive NL East crown.
“It was a tough one today,” Nola said after a 5-4 loss shoved the Phillies back to five games out of first place with 19 to play. “No doubt about it.”
Said interim manager Don Mattingly: “It’s one of those where you feel like it’s a tough one.”
Jhoan Duran (right) gave up the go-ahead run in the ninth inning of the Phillies’ 5-4 loss Sunday.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
OK, for the record, Jhoan Duran gave up the go-ahead run in the ninth on Ozzie Albies’ leadoff double and Austin Riley’s triple. It was only the second earned run allowed by the star closer since Aug. 1.
Before that, though, the worst fear of 42,793 paying customers at sold-out Citizens Bank Park — and the biggest concern for team officials — reared its head again. Because as well as the Phillies have played over the last three months, the bridge to Duran is as creaky as ever.
Jonathan Bowlan has emerged as the primary eighth-inning reliever, but Mattingly noted that “his stuff ticks down a little bit” when he pitches on back-to-back days. Orion Kerkering has faltered. José Alvarado is inconsistent.
The choice, then, with a 4-1 lead was McFarlane, who was still in double-A at the All-Star break but has the kind of big arm that leaves organizations dreaming that he could be an X factor in October.
McFarlane gave up a single on a first-pitch fastball to Mike Yastrzemski and a double to Drake Baldwin on a slider. He threw seven fastballs in a row — all 100 mph or more — to Acuña, the Braves’ best player and Public Enemy No. 1 these days in Philly baseball for his showboating home-run trot.
“That was the plan there,” McFarlane said. “Just trust [catcher Garrett Stubbs]’ calls and trust myself to make those pitches.”
Said Mattingly: “You feel like he beat him with most of those, and like the sixth pitch was the first one I felt like [Acuña] was on time. Maybe [go to] something different. But I’m just backseat quarterbacking.”
With a 1-2 count, McFarlane intended to put the seventh fastball above the strike zone. It wasn’t elevated enough, and Acuña drove it into the bleachers in left-center field.
Cue the boos. Watch the air leave the balloon.
Here, then, is the state of play in the NL East: By taking two of three in this four-game holiday weekend series, the Braves are assured of leaving town with no less than a four-game lead that would functionally be five games by virtue of winning the season series.
It appears the Phillies’ best path to the playoffs is the wild card, where they maintained a 4½-game cushion. They’re also still a half-game behind the Cubs for the top wild card, which brings a home series in the best-of-three initial round.
Oh, but think of what might have been if not for that eighth-inning collapse.
“I figured it was a good spot for Alex,” Mattingly said. “He’s been pitching well. You want to give him that shot. I think it was the right [move] for today. … Alex was rested. We felt like it was a good spot.”
Nola dazzled again, setting down the first 10 batters before allowing a one-out double to Acuña in the fourth. It wasn’t until the sixth that he gave up a run on a one-out walk, a single, and a sacrifice fly.
With Nola’s pitch count under control, Mattingly sent him back out for the seventh inning against the middle of the Braves’ order. And with one out, Mauricio Dubón doubled on a ball that Bryce Harper lost in the sun in right field.
Still, Mattingly stuck with Nola.
The sun blinded Alec Bohm on a foul pop down the first-base line with two outs. Nola regrouped to strike out Sean Murphy and hold a 2-1 lead. As Nola walked off the mound and reached out with his right hand to have it checked, the umpire almost had to get in line behind teammates who wanted to shake it.
Aaron Nola throws during the second inning against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
But the Phillies were still three outs from Duran. And given the state of the bullpen, there aren’t three more difficult outs for them to get.
Now, they’ll find out how McFarlane handles adversity.
“I think we see how he responds, and I think I feel good about the way he’s going to respond,” Mattingly said. “It’s going to happen to everybody if you play long enough, so we’ll see. I think he’ll be fine. He’s been a kid that’s handled everything.”
Except blowing a three-run lead in the eighth inning.
“Just come to the field the next day, flush it, and just believe in yourself,” McFarlane said. “Understand that you don’t let that moment define you and just accept failure for what it is and continue to keep pushing.”
Shortly after 1 a.m., the teens were riding westbound on Hazel Avenue, approaching 58th Street, when they disregarded a stop sign and collided with a red Cadillac CTS, police said.
Paramedics transported the 15-year-old e-bike operator to Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, where he was listed in critical condition, police said. His 16-year-old passenger, whose name police also did not release, was listed in stable condition.
The driver of the Cadillac, who remained at the scene, was not injured.
Jhoan Duran unleashed a sinking, 99-mph splitter for a game-ending groundout, clapped his glove three times, and shook hands.
Ho-hum.
But Duran’s 11-pitch ninth inning in Saturday night’s 4-2 victory over the Braves was notable in that it marked his 30th save. And a Phillies reliever hadn’t recorded 30 saves in a season since … checks notes … Jeanmar Gómez in 2016.
“He makes me feel good when I’m able to say, ‘OK, let’s go to Jo,” interim manager Don Mattingly said before Sunday’s game. “It’s nice to have that guy out there.”
Just to prove he’s human, Duran gave up the go-ahead run in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 5-4 loss to the Braves. After Alex McFarlane allowed a game-tying three-run homer to Ronald Acuña Jr. in the eighth, Ozzie Albies doubled and Austin Riley tripled against Duran.
But Duran has been mostly automatic — 1.85 ERA, 99 strikeouts in 73 innings, 46-for-51 in save chances — since coming over at the trade deadline last season. The Phillies don’t take him for granted, though — and not only because they sent top-100 prospects Eduardo Tait and Mick Abel to the Twins to get him.
“When you feel like you have that guy that you can just hand him the ball in the ninth, it feels like it sets up the way we’re able to go get the ball to our bullpen,” Kyle Schwarber said. “He’s been so key for us.”
Duran converted his first 16 saves this season before a hiccup June 9 in Toronto. His only other blown save came July 27 in Miami. In 51⅓ innings, he has allowed one homer, a solo shot to pinch-hitting Kyle Manzardo that decided a 1-0 loss to Cleveland on May 22.
Phillies closer Jhoan Duran has allowed one homer in 51 1/3 innings this season.Monica Herndon / Staff Photographer
In fact, Duran’s dominance prompts the question of whether he’s having the best season ever by a Phillies closer.
Pitching in a bygone era for relievers, Jim Konstanty logged 152 innings, won 16 games and saved 22, and was named NL MVP for the 1950 Whiz Kids. Steve Bedrosian notched 40 saves and won the Cy Young Award in 1987. Brad Lidge famously went 48-for-48 in save chances, including the postseason, and threw the clinching pitch of the 2008 World Series.
But based on ERA, walks/hits per inning pitched, and opponents’ batting average, there’s only one instance of a Phillies closer being as unhittable as Duran this season:
Billy Wagner, 2005: 1.51 ERA, 0.837 WHIP, 87 strikeouts, 6 homers, .165 average
The Phillies likely will ask Duran to get more than three outs in postseason games. If anything, though, his presence amplifies the Phillies’ need to bridge the gap between the starter and their star closer when they have a lead in the seventh and eighth innings.
Jonathan Bowlan has taken over as the primary setup man, although lefty José Alvarado could also be in the mix, especially against pockets of left-handed hitters. McFarlane faltered for the first time Sunday as his role increases, especially given Orion Kerkering’s inconsistency.
But there’s no question about the ninth inning.
“I was excited at the beginning of this year to be able to get [Duran] from the start and really feel like we can get him where he needs to be,” Schwarber said. “And he’s been that guy since we traded for him. We’re lucky to have that guy at the back end.”
Phillies top prospect Aidan Miller played in his first game of the season Saturday night for low-A Clearwater.Jose F. Moreno / Staff Photographer
Miller time
Top prospect Aidan Miller doubled off the left-field wall in his first at-bat of the season Saturday night for low-A Clearwater.
More significantly, he stayed off the injury report after the game.
“I know he got a hit — he got a double — and I know he was swinging the bat pretty good in the live [batting practices],” Mattingly said. “I don’t think any of that’s what you’re really searching for. You’re searching for him being on the field, bouncing back, all that kind of stuff, and being able to progress. I think that’s what we’re looking at.”
Miller, a 22-year-old shortstop, was sidelined since spring training by a low back condition that required a spinal procedure in June. He played five innings at shortstop in his first game, also drawing a walk and committing an error.
The Phillies could keep Miller in Clearwater for the Florida State League playoffs, which begin next week, before moving him through the system. Double-A Reading is closing in on an Eastern League playoff spot; triple-A Lehigh Valley’s season runs through Sept. 21.
Barring a setback, Miller is tentatively slated to play in the Arizona Fall League, although rosters haven’t been announced yet.
“I didn’t hear anything bad coming out of [Saturday night],” Mattingly said. “So, we’ll see where it goes.”
109.1 mph double for Aidan Miller in his first AB of 2026!
Veteran lefty Nestor Cortes, who signed a minor-league contract last month, is scheduled to pitch next week for Clearwater in a Florida State League playoff game, according to Mattingly. The 31-year-old had surgery last November on a torn tendon in his throwing arm. The Phillies took a flier in hopes that he can help down the stretch and in the postseason. … Jesús Luzardo (13-5, 3.02 ERA) is scheduled to start the series finale at 1:05 p.m. Monday against Braves righty Grant Holmes (9-5, 3.62).
A curt text message privately rejecting concerns from leaders at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia about Medicaid cuts was a “dumb joke,” U.S. Sen. John Fetterman (D., Pa.) told CNN this weekend.
“Per usual — lies, half-truths, innuendos, smears, and anonymous,” Fetterman said. He later added: “No matter how many smears or stories, I’m proud to continue to deliver for Pennsylvania.”
The Wall Street Journal report included text messages between Fetterman and his staff and detailed several meetings or events that Fetterman tried to get out of attending, including the meeting with CHOP leaders and a funeral for three York County police officers who were killed while on duty.
Fetterman said the leaked text messages were “stripped of any context and circumstances.”
According to the Wall Street Journal, while discussing the meeting with CHOP officials last September, Fetterman asked in a text, “Why do I have to keep having to meet with chop.”
An aide responded, “Because they’re worried about Medicaid cuts.” Fetterman wrote back, “Well, I’m not.” He then wrote, “I’m convinced they just want free trips to DC.”
Fetterman told CNN that comment was a “dumb joke,” and “for that, I sincerely apologize.”
“My office and I always have, and always will, advocate for CHOP, support their requests and any other needs that we can assist with,” Fetterman told CNN.
The newspaper’s report also included text messages in which Fetterman questioned the length of the funeral for the three York County police officers, writing “3 hours??,” and said attending “may be a nonstarter.” Fetterman, who grew up in York County, did not attend the funeral, according to the report.
Fetterman told CNN that he “privately ordered flowers to be delivered for their families and expressed my condolences publicly” on the day of the fatal shooting. He also said he privately attended a fundraiser for the officers’ families in June, saying, “I met with their chief and the family members directly to express my personal condolences.”
The first-term senator’s tenure has been plagued with criticism. Former staffers have said he often cancels meetings at the last minute, and he has increasingly isolated himself from Democrats in Washington, according to the Wall Street Journal. He regularly appears on conservative media and attacks his own party, and he does not make regular public appearances in the Keystone State.
“If you were troubled by yesterday’s Wall Street Journal story… trust us, that’s just the tip of the iceberg,” the account posted. “It’s even worse than you thought.”
Staff writer Sam Janesch contributed to this article.
If you want to be optimistic about the Union, finding a way to scrape out a 2-0 win over CF Montréal on Saturday at Subaru Park gives you a reason.
So does Cavan Sullivan scoring in a third straight game, his seventh goal of the year in all competitions, and the fact that the win put the Union (7-10-6, 27 points) in ninth place, finally above the playoff line.
But if you’re still skeptical of this team’s true level, the rest of the night offered a pile of proof.
It was not a performance to sugarcoat, even as it took the unbeaten streak in league play to all eight such games of interim manager Ryan Richter’s tenure.
In truth, the quality — or lack of it — was what you’d have expected from the teams that entered the night in 12th and 14th place in the Eastern Conference.
There was Bruno Damiani’s latest pile of misses, especially a wide-open look in the middle of the 18-yard box in first-half stoppage time.
Then came Milan Iloski’s failure to score on a breakaway in the 75th, bailed out by Montréal goalkeeper Sebastian Breza fumbling the ball and Sullivan pouncing.
And in between the Union’s goals, Neil Pierre committed a soft but callable penalty kick foul, only for Montréal’s Prince Owusu to offer one of the worst attempts from the spot you’ll ever see.
45+1' | Huge missed opportunity from Bruno Damiani
The Union's best attacking moments in the first half have come from the right with Frankie Westfield. Beautiful ball played across the 18-yard-box for Damiani and again he misses wide.
A performance like that won’t cut it on Wednesday against FC Cincinnati (7:45 p.m., FS1, Fox Deportes, Apple TV), the first time the Union will face a truly good opponent since Inter Miami — but without the buzz of Lionel Messi visiting, and the energy that brings to the players on the field.
Nor will it stand next Sunday at San Diego (9 p.m., Apple TV). Or in the five-game stretch next month against big teams that will likely define the season: at Chicago, home vs. Charlotte and New England, then at Nashville and Cincinnati.
Richter knew it, too, and didn’t hesitate to say so Saturday night.
“The reality is, you’re not going to show up and play your best game every single week,” he said. “And that was the case [Saturday night], that is true. But we also created enough chances to get the goals that we did, and then the guys came up in big moments.”
Danley Jean Jacques gets Philadelphia's go-ahead goal! 👊
He acknowledged there had to be an “honest conversation” about it, especially after a first half where the Union were caught asleep defensively in the first two minutes and didn’t offer enough attacking-wise afterward.
Richter called Wednesday’s game “huge,” acknowledging its stakes and the spice that has simmered between the Union and Cincinnati in recent years.
“It’s a friendly rivalry, but it’s a chance for us against a really good team at home to show that we can compete with the next level of teams in the Eastern Conference,” he said.
There it was, as clear as could be: the next level of teams. A level the Union aren’t at.
Bruno Damiani (right) rues one of his big misses during the first half.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
The players were just as blunt.
Goalkeeper and captain Andre Blake said that at halftime, “there was a lot of chattering, because we knew that it wasn’t our best. … We just needed to find a way to figure out how to break them down.”
It took a scrappy set-piece goal to finally get through Montréal’s man-to-man defense, finished off by Danley Jean Jacques in the 58th.
“You’re going to have games like these where it’s difficult, different tests,” Blake said. “I’m just happy that we were able to find a way to get some goals. A win is a win.”
Danley Jean Jacques (right) celebrates his goal that opened the scoring.Elizabeth Robertson / Staff Photographer
Sullivan concurred.
“The first half was — we put on some pressure, but it wasn’t a great game to play in, in all honesty,” he said. “It was just not a pretty game. In the second half, I think our defensive pressure raised the level, and that sets the tone for the rest of play.”
If this piece sounds too cynical for a team on an eight-game unbeaten run in the league, the apology from here will be limited. It’s the reality of what the Union face, and the scale of the task for a team that wants to have high standards for results.
As Sullivan said: “We know that there’s a lot of stuff on the line right now. Playoff spots, we’re in one now, but you can go up and down at any moment.”
And if you think you’ve heard this message before on these pages, you’re right. The point isn’t to be repetitive. It’s to be clear that as Philadelphia fans line back up for the Union bandwagon, they need to know there are much harder games ahead. Better to be realistic about that now, so that you won’t be surprised if the sting comes later.
It was nowhere near perfect, but Villanova did what it needed to pick up its first Patriot League victory on Saturday night.
Villanova (1-1, 1-1 Patriot League) went on the road to take on conference opponent Bucknell. The Wildcats were coming off a devastating season-opening loss and needed a win to get back on track.
After Villanova took a two-possession lead, Bucknell (0-2, 0-2) battled back to set up a thrilling fourth quarter. With the help of a tipped field goal, Villanova held off the Bison in the fourth quarter to win, 17-16.
Villanova was able to lead Bucknell at halftime, 14-0, after wide receiver Braden Reed collected a pair of passing touchdowns from graduate quarterback Pat McQuaide. On the other side of the ball, Villanova’s defense was able to limit Bucknell to 100 yards of total first-half offense.
Reed, a sophomore, led all Villanova receivers with five receptions for 68 yards and two touchdowns. Sophomore Brandon Binkowski totaled 71 yards on three receptions, including a 27-yard reception on a drive that ended in a touchdown.
Delaware County native and Strath Haven graduate Sam Milligan led all Bucknell receivers with 13 receptions for 135 yards and two touchdowns. Milligan tied the program’s record for touchdown receptions.
McQuaide was able to clean up his passing game after last week, completing 13 passes for 218 yards and two touchdowns. Last week, McQuaide threw three interceptions against William & Mary after throwing only four all of last season.
Garrett Rogan fills in without missing a beat
After Villanova starting linebacker Christian Caballero went down with an injury and did not return to the game, Garrett Rogan entered from the sidelines.
Rogan collected seven total tackles (five solo) and the Wildcats’ lone pass breakup while filling in for Caballero. However, Rogan’s big play came on Bucknell’s 29-yard field goal attempt to take the lead with 1 minute, 57 seconds remaining.
With his right hand wrapped in a club cast, Rogan was able to get a piece of the ball as Bucknell kicker Juan Garanton attempted a 29-yard field goal that would have given Bucknell a 19-17 lead with under two minutes left in regulation. Rogan’s tip was enough for the ball to miss the uprights as it went wide left.
Against William & Mary last week, Rogan had seven total tackles (two solo) and one tackle for a loss.
Last season, Rogan played in 15 games for the Wildcats and tallied 33 tackles (25 solo), one sack, one tackle for loss, and three pass break-ups.
Wildcats clean up penalties and turnovers
Villanova head coach Mark Ferrante always puts a big emphasis on winning the turnover and penalty battles, and that was no different going into this weekend.
The Wildcats gave up only 45 yards on five penalties after giving up 15 penalties for 107 yards against William & Mary last week.
“You’re going to have a couple of penalties during the course of the game,” Ferrante told The Inquirer before the Bucknell game. “When you can put 15 of them together, that’s a big deal.”
Villanova did not turn the ball over against Bucknell, despite a single fumble from a snap that flew over McQuaide’s head in the second quarter. Bucknell also did not record a turnover.
Villanova’s zero turnovers this week are in contrast to its four last week (five if the botched onside kick recovery counted, which it should have, according to Ferrante).
“If you tell me we’re going to have a turnover a game, we’re going to have 11, 12 turnovers by the end of the year, that’s probably a pretty good year. Right now we’re on pace to have 60 if we do five a game. That’s not a good year.”
Villanova has less than a week to prepare for its annual FBS matchup, which will be against Louisville on Sept. 11 (7 p.m., ESPN/ACCN). Louisville was ranked No. 24 in the Associated Press Preseason Top 25 Poll.
It will be a tight turnaround for Louisville, which plays Ole Miss on Sunday at 7:30 p.m. The Cardinals will have just four days between games.
It will be the first time in history that the two programs will share the same field.
The math is simple: There are 11 parking spots reserved for Academy at Palumbo teachers and 107 teachers and staff at the South Philadelphia school.
There’s no parking lot and people who work at the acclaimed magnet school tend to drive, teachers say.
Though public transportation is an option for some school staff, many teachers live outside the city, with fewer transit options nearby. And while some schools in the Philadelphia School District are close to bus, train, or trolley stops, others are farther afield, making them tougher to access via public transit.
“Before I even walk in the doors of the school, I am already overwhelmed with stress every single day,” Palumbo teacher Sheila Fisher said. She and other Palumbo staff might circle for 30 minutes or more hunting for a space and often have to park in two-hour spots, they said — meaning they have to dash out during the school day to move their cars.
Parking is at a premium at The Academy at Palumbo, at 11th and Catharine Streets, shown in this 2023 file photo. The school has over 100 staffers, no staff parking lot, and just 11 dedicated spaces.Alejandro A. Alvarez / Staff Photographer
It’s a common problem at many Philadelphia School District schools that lack dedicated parking lots, or those that have lots too small to fit all employees’ cars. Amid a continuing teacher shortage, in an underfunded school system that offers lower pay and tougher working conditions than many neighboring districts, it’s a quality-of-life problem with a real effect.
Bridget Mason, a Palumbo teacher, said neighbors have threatened to slash her tires if she parks in front of the public spaces in front of their houses.
Fisher estimates she’s gotten 150 or more tickets in the three years she’s worked at Palumbo and said she has paid close to $5,000 in tickets and lot fees on the days she just can’t find any spot.
Fisher loves teaching at Palumbo and hopes it will be her last job before retirement, years from now. But that’s not a given, she said.
“The stress has come to the point where my husband has mentioned the option of me leaving Palumbo to work elsewhere, because parking has become such a challenge,” Fisher said.
‘It’s a nightmare’
To park at Penn Treaty High School in Fishtown, you can’t arrive too early, because neighbors won’t have moved their cars yet. But you can’t arrive too late, or you’ll miss your window, get locked out of a spot, and be late to work because you have to “circle and circle” for a space, said Kerri Todd, a longtime Penn Treaty teacher.
Cars fill the streets and sidewalks outside Penn Treaty High School on Tuesday.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
“It’s a nightmare — parking is so scarce,” Todd said. Some cars park on the sidewalk around the perimeter of the building.
Todd knows exactly when she has to arrive for the best chance at a parking spot. And if she ends up having to settle for a two-hour space, it’s not as tough as it would be for other teachers, because Todd’s free periods make convenient times for car moving.
Even Todd’s principal gets into the act. If she’s working in her office, Wajibah Thompson might hang her head out the window and help.
“She’s like, ‘Yo, Kerri, move over, I think another car can squeeze in there.’ She’ll ask neighbors, ‘Can you move your car up a little more? We can get another car in,’” Todd said.
A car with a parking ticket outside of Penn Treaty High School on Tuesday.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
Parking is also a perpetual worry at Muñoz-Marín Elementary at Third and Ontario Streets in North Philadelphia, said Jennifer Goldman, a veteran teacher there. Muñoz-Marín has a lot, but it’s not nearly large enough for all staff at the 500-student school.
Compounding the problem, Goldman said, is a vacant parcel adjacent to Muñoz-Marín’s parking lot — people dump trash there, and it’s smelly and not usable.
“It’s awful parking around here,” Goldman said. “We just have to circle — it’s a race to find a spot, and sometimes people are late. Residents have started [putting cones in] their spots.”
Educators working in neighborhoods around the city struggle with parking, with teachers at schools including Bache-Martin in Fairmount, Fanny Jackson Coppin and Southwark in South Philadelphia, and Robert Morris in North Philadelphia raising the issues to an Inquirer reporter.
Cars parked all along a side street outside of Fanny Jackson Coppin School on Tuesday.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
‘It should not be this difficult’
There’s some precedent for school parking help.
Councilmember Jamie Gauthier paved a way for special parking permits for teachers at Powel Elementary in West Philadelphia. (The same permits are not available to Science Leadership Academy Middle School staffers, who work in the same building.)
The permits are not free: The cost is roughly similar to the price of a monthly transit pass.
Palumbo’s parent group wants a similar option for their teachers and staff, but three years of efforts have yielded only frustration, its leaders said. They’ve been shuffled from bureaucrat to bureaucrat, and ultimately have been told the person who can make it happen is City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, whose district includes Palumbo.
Vincent Thompson, Johnson’s spokesperson, said Johnson understands parent and staff concerns but “at the same time, any discussion of changes to parking policy must consider the impact on the broader community” — the Philadelphia Parking Authority, neighbors, and residents who would be affected by turning some spaces into school staff permit parking during school hours.
“Council President Johnson and his district office are willing to work with the Philadelphia Federation of Teachers to find thoughtful, practical solutions to parking challenges around our schools in the Second Councilmanic District,” Thompson said in a statement.
The Philadelphia School District did not respond to a request for comment.
Academy at Palumbo Liberal Arts High School, located at the corner of Catherine and S. 11th Streets. The teachers at school need to move their cars during work day because of timed street parking.Alejandro A. Alvarez / Staff Photographer
Martin O’Rourke, a spokesperson for the PPA, said it “does its best to assist whenever possible, recognizing the delicate balance that exists among residents, businesses, visitors and teachers necessary to manage and share the limited curb space available for parking in many neighborhoods near local schools.”
It’s frustrating to Julie Kaeli, the former Palumbo HSA president, that three years of “begging and nagging” Johnson’s office and others on behalf of students and teachers has led nowhere, she said.
“They’re giving us lip service,” Kaeli said. “It’s so clear to us that they are no interested in addressing this issue. Our school is highly ranked, our teachers are amazing and so dedicated. We know what little resources and support they have. This is such an easy fix; it should not be this difficult.”
‘Parking was a must have’
The lack of adequate parking for staff has consequences, according to educators and those who support them.
“For me, parking was a must have when deciding on a school,” said Cathy Provenzano, who recently retired from teaching at Hill-Freedman World Academy in East Mount Airy. Hill-Freedman has a large lot.
Parking problems have scared off teachers who were otherwise interested in coming to Palumbo, too.
“Each year when interviewing potential new staff, the school may be interested in offering a position to a candidate, but candidates turn down offers because of the lack of parking,” the school HSA said in a statement. “With the teacher shortages the district has had, this is not ideal.”
The parking lot full with teachers and staff’s cars at Luis Muñoz-Marín Elementary School on Tuesday.Tyger Williams / Staff Photographer
A teacher at a Kensington school has dealt with a lack of parking lot for years. But it’s gotten tougher to park in the neighborhood, and she’s at her wit’s end, she said. The teacher requested her name be withheld because she feared reprisal.
“I’ve been at my school for over 10 years and have never considered leaving until the first day of school this year,” the teacher said. “I drove around for about 35 minutes, trying to find parking.”
She ended up clocking in late.
“Our students deserve high-quality educators, but us not having a parking lot is a huge deterrent for many people,” she said. “While we are lucky to have several staff members at our school that have been there for five or more years, we also have had a higher turnover in the years since street cleaning became a thing. Teachers don’t want to spend extra time driving around to find parking. That time is meant to be preparing for our student, to make sure that they’re getting the education they deserve.”
For its 157-year-history, Ursinus College has educated only undergraduates. But that will change next year when the school starts its first graduate program.
About 85% of faculty voted in favor of the move into graduate education on Thursday, and the small liberal arts college, which enrolls about 1,370 undergraduates and is based in Collegeville, will start a master’s in exercise and sport science next May.
The move comes as colleges around the country are coping with a drop in the available pool of high school students, and consequently undergraduates and increasing financial pressures. As part of an ongoing effort to close a budget deficit, Ursinus in June eliminated 26 full-time and 10 part-time employees, representing 15% of the school’s nonfaculty staff. And last December, the school announced it would cut 29 full-time faculty positions — nearly a quarter.
Most four-year colleges in the region already offer graduate programs, with few exceptions such as Haverford and Swarthmore Colleges, both small, highly selective liberal arts schools.
“This is an important moment in the history of Ursinus College and a natural next step in our evolution as an applied liberal arts institution,” Ursinus President Gundolf Graml said in a statement. “Our first graduate program builds on the strength of our health sciences programs and, importantly, extends the applied, professional and experiential approach at the heart of an Ursinus education to graduate study.”
Graml said the college is planning to eventually offer more graduate programs and that a second one already is in the works, but he declined to provide further details. The college has appointed a new director of graduate studies.
Ursinus’ new master’s will be a 30-credit, 15-month online program, costing about $600 per credit for a total of $18,000, the school said. That is below the new annual federal cap on loans for graduate programs, Graml noted.
The college said it will give students currently enrolled in its undergraduate program in that field a direct path into a graduate program.
From 2020 to 2024, the college’s health sciences department awarded 188 undergraduate degrees, and more than half of those graduates pursued a graduate degree or certification at other colleges, the school said.
“We know that there’s student demand,” Graml said. “We see our students going out after graduation and continuing, and so we want to offer them an opportunity to continue that path at Ursinus.”
Serving as a potential enticement to stay at Ursinus, the program will allow undergraduates to take up to two graduate courses if they are preliminarily accepted into the program, the school said.
That means Ursinus undergraduates who enroll in the program might be able to finish more quickly than 15 months, said Kyle Beyer, associate professor of health sciences.
“We recognize this is something we could offer that would enhance our students’ learning and make them more competitive in the job market,” Beyer said.
An alum already emailed him, he said, asking how to enroll in the program.
The move into graduate programming will not require an increase in faculty, Graml said. Over time, it could boost revenue.
Ursinus has been running total operating losses for most of the last nine years, reaching $13.4 million in 2024 but falling to $4 million in 2025, financial records show.
Ursinus experienced a 10% decline in first-year enrollment last fall and a 6.4% decline in overall enrollment.
Graml said this year’s overall and freshman enrollment numbers won’t be available until after census later this month.
