Banned from prom and graduation | Morning Newsletter
And I-95 will reopen “within two weeks.”
The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Enjoy this mostly sunny Father’s Day, with a high near 84.
Today’s lead story highlights a young shooting victim barred from formative school experiences and the difficult balance of keeping kids and families safe.
If you see this 🔑 in today’s newsletter, that means we’re highlighting our exclusive journalism. You need to be a subscriber to read these stories.
— Paola Pérez (@pdesiperez, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
Seventeen-year-old Dashawn Walker was heading home after school one day in February when a man jumped out of a car and shot him 10 times.
Walker was in a coma for two days. He spent months enduring more than a dozen surgeries and relearning how to walk, his legs now held together with metal rods. He still struggles with anxiety, depression, and nightmares.
Police and prosecutors said the shooter appeared to target Walker, but it’s unclear why. He has never been in trouble with the law.
That Walker was targeted worried Veronica Joyner, founder and chief administrator of Mathematics, Civics and Sciences Charter School. So Joyner and her board members banned Walker from in-person school and events, including prom and graduation.
In Walker’s own words: Instead of being supported by his school, he felt like he was blamed for what happened to him. “I was the victim, and I felt like I was the problem.”
In Joyner’s own words: “If you’re a target, do I bring that target around other people and get them caught up in a shooting? We would be placing others at risk by having him around.” Joyner also said Walker should be grateful the school helped ensure he graduated. “It’s not a requirement that I provide him with a graduation or prom. It’s a privilege.”
Joyner has made headlines before: Earlier this year, the Education Law Center sued the school after lawyers said Joyner expelled a girl for getting into a heated argument with her classmates (a judge ultimately sided with the school). And in 2019, the same group sued the school alleging it barred a 6-year-old from enrolling because she required services for attention deficit and hyperactivity disorder.
Continue reading on the friction between supporting victims of gun violence while keeping kids and families safe.
What you should know today
Two Pennsylvania State Police troopers were shot, one fatally, Saturday.
A man died at Devil’s Pool in Wissahickon Valley Park on Friday. Police said the man was walking near the popular swimming and diving spot when he fell in the water.
The Wawa in Headhouse Square will close July 16, marking the sixth Center City Wawa to shutter since 2020.
Lincoln University is shutting down its nursing program in May. It was Pennsylvania’s only program of its kind at a HBCU and struggled with low pass rates since its founding. 🔑
David Patten, the Rhode Island state official who exhibited “bizarre, offensive, and unprofessional” behavior during a March visit to the Bok building, has resigned and apologized to Philadelphians.
At Philly’s largest job fair, some candidates were seeking hybrid schedules, but fewer employers were on hand to hire.
Former Penn president Amy Gutmann earned nearly $23 million in 2021. But most of it was accrued over her 18 years as president, thanks to “deferred compensation.”
Tomorrow is Juneteenth and there are plenty of ways to celebrate in Philly. Here’s what you need to know about six events happening through Monday filled with art, food, and culture.
There’s new brunch on the block. Two new South Philly spots offer wishes and dishes. 🔑
Days after a section of the highway collapsed in Northeast Philly, everyone is wondering the same thing: How long will it be closed to traffic?
On Saturday, we got an answer: Gov. Josh Shapiro said I-95 will be reopened within the next two weeks.
Shapiro made the announcement during a news conference after he took a helicopter tour of the collapse site with President Joe Biden and other elected officials.
Biden said the federal government will pay for the emergency work to reopen the highway, calling it the most important infrastructure project in the country right now.
“It’s critical. It’s critical to our economy, it’s critical to our quality of life. We’re going to continue to do everything we can within our power to get this back open as quickly, as easily, as possible,” Biden said.
Continue reading for more on Biden’s visit and the highway’s reconstruction.
The joys (and sorrows) of Father’s Day
Whatever your situation looks like today, I’m sending you love and a warm hug, and a special thanks to all the awesome dads and paternal figures out there. Here are some reads:
❤️ Why buy your father a new shirt or the latest gadget when you can give him a smile? Maybe one of these comedic refrains will do the trick.
❤️ Inquirer columnist Jenice Armstrong writes: “Growing up, I never knew there was a negative stereotype about Black dads. That’s because of my father.”
❤️ Before Father’s Day, many of us are riding waves of grief. Inquirer contributing writer Darcy Walker Krause shares what it’s like to experience the loss of her dad and family of origin.
❤️ As seen in the New York Times: Father’s Day reminded us of what we didn’t have: the father to do all the things we saw other fathers do. Here’s how I learned to forgive him, writes Esau McCaulley.
❤️ It might not be too late to make plans. Treat dad to Father’s Day specials throughout Philadelphia, from distillery tours to gut-busting brunches.
❓Pop quiz❓
For the first time, both Made in America headliners are women. Who are they?
A) SZA and Kehlani
B) Beyoncé and Ari Lennox
C) SZA and Lizzo
D) Lizzo and Doja Cat
Think you know the answer? Find out here.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram 🧩
Hint: Pennsylvania’s section of the Appalachian Trail is often referred to as this due to its treacherous terrain.
AIRLOCKS NAVY
We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Email us if you know the answer, and send us your own original anagram to unscramble if you’d like. Cheers to Mary Beth Pratt who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Logan Square.
Photo of the day
🎶 For today’s Sunday track, we’re listening to: “I think there’s something you should know / I think it’s time I told you so / There’s something deep inside of me / There’s someone else I’ve got to be.” 🎶
👋🏽 This newsletter will take a break for a few days, so expect Taylor back in your inbox on Wednesday. Take care!
