Fraser, who was also escorted out of district headquarters on the August day Ackerman left her job, could not be reached for comment.
Reached Monday night, Ackerman said she did not know Akers and did not order him to complete any projects.
District spokesman Fernando Gallard said he could not comment on a personnel matter.
Akers knew Protect Philly Education was presented to the public as an independent group, but "it wasn't," he said. "The communications team put it together."
Gallard confirmed that Protect Philly Education was engineered by Ackerman's communications department.
"We have found out that work was done by the team that left," Gallard said. "The district did outreach to individuals to donate money for the Protect Philly Education project."
In fact, the district must pay about $1,000 for Protect Philly Education printing costs. A sponsor pledged to pay the bill and then backed out, leaving the district on the hook, Gallard said.
The genesis of Protect Philly Education was discovered after Ackerman left, Gallard said, when an investigation was launched into multiple initiatives, including a lengthy Ackerman tribute video that briefly appeared on the district's website. The video was produced by district staff at the former communications office's direction, Gallard said.
Documents also show that Akers was working on an interactive site that would provide a portal for the community to watch videos "concerning the superintendent, staff and SDP community." A "student spotlight" would showcase student talents in an American Idol-style display.
Akers said that the idea for "The Teachers of Philly," an iPhone game, was also Fraser's.
"She wanted something that would put Ackerman in a better light," Akers said. "I was given the job of doing some mock-ups, of brainstorming ideas for apps. This was something to help Ackerman's relationship with teachers."
Akers worked on the game on district time at Fraser's suggestion, he said. Because it was an involved project, he reached out to some friends - non-district employees - to help.
When it became clear that Ackerman was on her way out, Fraser stopped communicating with him, Akers said. He took the project on as his own, stopped working on it during district time, and switched Ackerman's role to a villain, not a hero.
The Angry Birds-like game features three superhero teachers facing characters clearly meant to represent Ackerman, Mayor Nutter, and Gov. Corbett.
