The path forward for PAFA | Morning Newsletter
And churches challenged by fires
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The Morning Newsletter
Start your day with the Philly news you need and the stories you want all in one easy-to-read newsletter
Good morning, and welcome to Sunday.
We can see clearly now that the rain is gone. Yesterday turned out to be the rainiest March day in Philly in 150 years and also a daily record. In exchange, today will be sunny and chilly with a high near 50 — a brisk one for the 12,000 people expected to participate in Philly’s Love Run.
Big changes are coming to Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, one of America’s great art schools. The institution announced in January that it would be phasing out its undergraduate and graduate degree programs. But PAFA has also been pursuing a series of shifts beyond the school. Our lead story goes behind the scenes on the Academy’s path forward and what’s at stake.
— Paola Pérez (@pdesiperez, morningnewsletter@inquirer.com)
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Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts’ decision to end its degree programs is part of a rethinking of the entire institution and promises to alter the kind of student the Academy aims to attract.
Catch up quick: The decision to wind down and eliminate PAFA’s college programs — the MFA program started in 1993, the BFA program in 2008 — by the end of 2025 was precipitated by enrollment trends leaders say had become impossible to ignore.
The move was a public sign that change was afoot. And the school has revealed little about what educational programs of the future will be. But more quietly, PAFA has been pursuing several initiatives extending beyond the school, museum, and its two Broad Street buildings just north of City Hall.
The financial picture: It’s severe enough that the Academy is planning to sell the naming rights to its historic Furness building. This frozen asset has never been freed up for use.
Between efforts to renovate buildings, keeping the door open to selling off art, and seeking to expand revenue by renting out space, at stake is the future of a two-century-old artistic tradition perhaps unmatched in America.
Go deeper with arts and life reporter Peter Dobrin on the problems and promises of PAFA’s new direction.
What you should know today
A man who escaped a Western Pennsylvania prison last year was taken into custody by U.S. Marshals in Philadelphia on Friday.
Police in Lancaster evacuated the city’s public library and some of the blocks surrounding it for a few hours Saturday after a suspicious package was found inside, and bomb threats targeted, the building ahead of a planned Drag Queen Story Hour.
A $15 million gift to Drexel University from the Howley Foundation will fund scholarships for up to 10 students to attend the university each year.
Philadelphia’s blight-busting business is under scrutiny at City Council. Testimony on Thursday echoed the findings of an Inquirer investigation that uncovered an ecosystem of nonprofits, run by real estate investors, using the state conservatorship law for their own benefit.
Not enough doctors are prescribing an antiviral drug to treat COVID, Philadelphia’s health department said this month in a health advisory, adding that more widespread use of the drug can reduce hospitalizations and serious illness in high-risk patients.
The mystical, fantastical South Street store Mineralistic is closing after 35 years. It may be the only store in Philly where you could find crystals, dinosaur fossils, and cat bat statues.
Ed Forchion, the popular New Jersey marijuana activist known as NJWeedman, is free on a bond after allegedly hitting a man twice in the head with a fire extinguisher during an altercation outside a nightclub last month in Florida.
Reality TV fans are packing Philadelphia-area bars for a sense of a community during watch parties. The weeknight events are good for business.
Philadelphia-area billionaire Jeffrey Yass’ firm was the largest institutional shareholder as of December in the company that has merged with Truth Social, former President Donald Trump’s social media company.
Kate, the Princess of Wales, revealed Friday that she has cancer and is undergoing chemotherapy, ending widespread speculation about her whereabouts in 2024. Inquirer columnist Elizabeth Wellington says we should butt out of the princess’ business.
Two historic Philly churches face the challenge of celebrating Holy Week, between Palm Sunday and Easter, as they try to recover from devastating fires.
In January, a blaze ripped through the 135-year-old sanctuary of Overbook Presbyterian Church. The Philadelphia Fire Department said it was an accident. And in early March, an electrical fire broke out in the historic Arch Street Methodist Church, causing substantial damage. No one was injured in either fire.
Notable quote: “Our community has been displaced, but it hasn’t been disbanded,” said the Rev. Adam Hearlson of Overbrook Presbyterian Church.
Read more on the churches’ Holy Week services amid the road to recovery.
❓Pop quiz
A new analysis of songs people listen to while having sex reveals a song by this singer supposedly has the top slot. (Serious question: Are y’all okay?)
A) Drake
B) The Weeknd
C) Taylor Swift
D) Lady Gaga
Think you know? Check your answer.
🧩 Unscramble the anagram
Hint: Argentina reminded fans why they’re World Cup champions in their 3-0 win over El Salvador at Lincoln Financial Field on Friday. The crowd was disappointingly small, though, thanks to exorbitant ticket prices and the absence of this star player.
NOEL SIMILES
Email us if you know the answer. We’ll select a reader at random to shout out here. Cheers to Frank Bartell who correctly guessed Friday’s answer: Battleship New Jersey. On Thursday, the vessel made its first journey down the Delaware River, from Camden to Paulsboro, in three decades.
Photo of the day
I hope you get a moment to stop and see spring flowers up close as they bloom across the city. Check out The Inquirer’s photo gallery and use our cherry blossom guide to find them at their emerging and blooming peaks.
🎶 For today’s Sunday track, we’re listening to Willow’s latest single. It goes like this: “It’s like a snake shedding skin / Creating life to begin.”
👋🏽 It’s time for some cafecito. Thanks for spending part of your morning with me. Have a great day.