Philadelphia school district rejects a House committee's antisemitism report

As of 8:25 a.m. ET, Friday, Oct. 23, 2026

The School District of Philadelphia on Thursday, Oct. 22, rejected a report by the House Education and Workforce Committee that alleges antisemitism in its curriculum, NBC10 Philadelphia reported.

The committee's chairman, Rep. Tim Walberg, R-Mich., released the report Wednesday, Oct. 21, covering investigations into the Philadelphia district, the Berkeley Unified School District and the National Education Association, the committee said.

Among its allegations about Philadelphia, the committee said: "A world history assignment asks students to honor a resistance movement, listing a Hamas-endorsed campaign as an option. Another lesson asks students to label the United States and Israel as terrorists." The committee said the district told it that teachers and administrators would no longer write social studies curricula and that its social studies curriculum director was undergoing termination proceedings.

"Parents send their children to school to learn reading, writing, and math—not to be taught to hate Israel or embrace radical political causes," Walberg said.

What the district says

"The report distorts and mischaracterizes our record," district spokesperson Monique Braxton said in a statement, according to NBC10. "In fact, the District has taken serious steps to combat all forms of hate in our schools, including a new record management system, revised policies, mandatory annual training for staff, and appropriate disciplinary actions."

District leaders also said they "object to the blatantly partisan framing" of the district days before the November election, NBC10 reported.

"The Board of Education does not agree with the findings in the Committee's report," Board President Reginald Streater said in a statement, according to NBC10.