US Sen. Chris Coons made a special visit to 4th graders at Sanford School this morning to take part in “Sanford City,” a five-week project where kids turn each of their classrooms into simulated communities.
A key part of Sanford City are the adult occupations each student adopts for the week. Each student forms a business – selling their wares to other students and faculty – and everyone has a city job, which runs the gamut between sanitation engineer, loan officer, or running for office.
In a gesture that elicited a bit of giggling among students, the Delaware Senator “swore in” three new town mayors (one for each classroom) who were elected by their peers to lead Sanford City. Coons referred to his very official action a Delaware first.
During his presentation, Coons talked about his path to the Senate, shared highlights of his career, and responded to many questions from students, who were excited the Senator made the trip to Hockessin from Washington. His advice to kids who expressed interest in careers in politics was to “listen to the people and do what’s right.”
“I was really happy to be here today with some bright 4th graders who were eager to ask me about my job as a Senator,” said Coons. “I was more eager to hear about what they were learning about – Delaware history!”