Robert O’Donnell
Education Senior Fellow
The Honorable Robert W. O’Donnell is an Education Senior Fellow with the Commonwealth Foundation.
Bob is a Philadelphia-based attorney and a former Democratic Speaker of the Pennsylvania House of Representatives. As a member of the House for 19 years, Bob rose through the ranks of leadership, serving as caucus chairman, majority whip, majority leader, and Speaker of the House. While in public service, he developed a reputation as a thoughtful, dynamic, and intellectually honest member of the House. He has been a consistent advocate for equality of opportunity including supporting school choice throughout his tenure in the legislature.
Bob has served as a member of Public Employees Retirement Study Commission, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Pittsburgh, the Board of Trustees of the University of Pittsburgh, the Mayor’s Tax Budget and Advisory Committee (Philadelphia), the Chesapeake Bay Commission, the General State Authority, the Mayor’s Economic Recovery Task Force (Philadelphia), the Millrite Council, and the Philadelphia Port Corporation Board of Directors.
He is a graduate of Temple University and its law school and attended The Hague Academy of International Law. Arcadia College and Philadelphia University awarded Bod honorary degrees, and he has received several public awards including citations from the Pennsylvania League of Cities Service and Common Cause.
Bob resides in Chestnut Hill with his wife, Dr. Donna Gentile O’Donnell.
Don Kirkland Society: Call
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Fiscal Earmarks Reduce State Budget Transparency
The 2021–2022 Fiscal Code contains at least $5.5 billion in federal and state funds earmarked for special projects across the state, up from $120 million last year. Most of this…
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Op-Ed: Teacher Sues Union That Demands He Pay Dues For Almost A Year After He Resigned
A Pennsylvania teachers union argues that a teacher who resigned his union membership should pay 'fair-share fees' for the entire year, even though he resigned only a few months in.
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Op-Ed: Young Pennsylvanians want to fight climate change. Our leaders want to pretend they are.
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Op-Ed: Pennsylvanians deserve maximum wages, not harmful minimum wage mandates
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Op-Ed: Wolf climate change plan will kill Pa. jobs
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Op-Ed: Lawsuit claiming Pennsylvania has unequal school funding is misguided
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Op-Ed: Limited Government Can Make a Comeback in Pandemic Era
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Op-Ed: In Pennsylvania, Scientific and Economic Realities Unsettle Climate Change Morality Plays
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Education Landscape in PA: 2021
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New Research Shows Pathway to Fiscal Stability for States
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How Pennsylvania Is Progressing in the Race to Rebuild
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My Child Was Saved by School Choice
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My Child Was Saved by School Choice
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Op-Ed: I Might Pull My Kids From Public School This Fall For Teaching Them Racism
My kids attend one of the highest-rated public school systems in Pennsylvania. I may not be sending them back because of critical race theory.
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