This week’s biggest Winners & Losers

Ahead of its 150th anniversary in 2034, Temple University President John Fry released a 10-year plan for new residence and research facilities, abundant green space and an honors college. If Fry’s historic fundraising prowess is any guide, the result will be an ambitious upgrade for both the institution and its North Broad Street neighborhood, which the president envisions as an “innovation corridor.”

There’s no trolley problem here. The Pennsylvania Trolley Museum for USA Today’s Reader Choice Award in the Best Small Town Museum category. Located in Washington, southwest of Pittsburgh, the museum’s accessibility and inclusivity helped it make a name for itself. Voting for the award is open until Feb. 9.

There’s always time to celebrate our educators. Leon Smith, who teaches Advanced Placement U.S. History and African American Studies courses at Haverford High School, is a finalist for the 2026 National Teacher of the Year. Smith, the state’s 2025 Teacher of the Year, is the second consecutive Pennsylvania educator award winner to be named a national finalist.

Public health experts are warning that Pennsylvania’s effort to regulate vapes to restrict youth access may not actually work. The state’s recent law regulating the devices – the first of its kind in the commonwealth – is riddled with the kinds of loopholes that temptingly flavored smokes could easily blow through, according to experts, who also decry a lack of funding for enforcement. All in all, critics suggest the law’s weakness could exacerbate a black market, rather than keep vapes out of the hands of children.

For all its success in cyberspace, Amazon has struggled to find its footing IRL. This week, the retail giant announced it would close its Amazon Fresh and cashierless Go stores nationwide, including six in the Philadelphia area, some of which may be converted to Amazon’s more successful Whole Foods brand.

A York County couple is facing charges after allegedly attacking a woman at a fraternal club in Hanover and calling her racial slurs. According to police, Mitchell and Tresnak, now both charged with ethnic intimidation, allegedly assaulted the woman in Penn Township and asserted that “this is a MAGA town” and she “wasn’t going to make it here.”