Philadelphia High School Students Rub Elbows With Mayor Kenney
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- Fifteen Philadelphia area high school students, from economically disadvantaged neighborhoods, are getting an education in finances and real estate this summer as interns for the West Philadelphia Financial Services Institution (WPFSI).
They also got a bit of a political education last week, when they met Mayor Jim Kenney.
"I've changed my personality, not changed my personality, but I've tempered myself a lot," said Kenney.
Mayor Kenney spoke to the students on a wide range of topics: immigration, policing, the soda tax...
"I will tell you that Big Soda's like Big Pharma or Big Tobacco, they got money coming out of their ears," Kenney said.
As for the benefits of public office, "not as many as you'd think," he said.
"You really have to be very, very careful in the world of ethics today. Nobody can take you on a trip, you saw what happened to our D.A. I mean, that was insane," said Kenney.
"He was really cool. He was more down to earth than you imagine someone that high up would be," said Katelyn, one of the students.
The kids were generally charmed.
"The thing that really popped out to me is that he said, 'black women get only 63% of what a white man makes.' And it's really surprising that a white male politician knows that, so I'm really glad that he's, quote-unquote, 'woke,'" said Morgan, another student.
