Christina Kuhlmeier is a Temple University Public Policy Alumni, who graduated in May of 2025. She currently serves as the Policy & Legislative Aide for Council President Kenyatta Johnson at the City of Philadelphia. Christina has navigated multiple levels of government, from Attorney General elections, PA State Representative Offices, and landing in Philadelphia’s City Council. Christina understands the drive, motivation, and dedication that is required to make meaningful impacts in legislation, and is prepared to take her experience with her throughout her career. 

Briefly describe the current position you hold, and a general idea of your day-to-day operations.

As a Policy & Legislative Aide for City Council President Kenyatta Johnson, I support the Council President in carrying out his legislative agenda, conducting research into various issues, whether that be general affordability issues, tax policies, early childhood, or retirement solutions. My team and I meet with various stakeholders, propose different legislative solutions, prepare for and staff at Council hearings, think through potential implications of legislation as well as how to best implement legislation. 

As part of the technical staff, my team and I also serve as a resource to the rest of the City Council body, conducting legislative impact analyses and various research upon request. Thankfully, I am given a lot of agency in my role to research legislative issues that I am interested in as well, so I try to stay knowledgeable about what other cities are doing and how they might be replicated in Philadelphia.

In the past year I've served as a resource to the Tax Reform Commission, staffed budget hearings and managed Council's inquiries into various departments as part of the budgetary process, helped pass legislation creating the soon-to-be enacted Philadelphia Retirement Savings Program (PhillySaves), and supported Council President's Special Committee on Early Childhood Education. 

In my role, you must be able to jump from one issue to the next quickly, and get up to speed on a topic you may not have much expertise in.

What experiences or skills would you credit for your promotion from a Policy Fellow to a Policy Aide? How did your experience in the Public Policy Program prepare you for your current role? 

I think my writing skills helped earn me my promotion from a Policy Fellow to a Policy Aide. My director once told me that she appreciates my policy memos for their clarity and readability, as opposed to being too dense or catered to academia. My experience in the Public Policy Program as well as my past experiences interning in the U.S. Senate and working for a PA State Rep helped shape this writing style and flexibility to tailor my writing to certain audiences. 

Knowing how much legislators juggle on a day-to-day basis, it's so important to be able to relay to them quickly and clearly the intent of what you are trying to convey. That's not to say it's not important to thoroughly research the subject as well, as you should be able to take in a lot of information to fully understand an issue, but decide what is the most relevant to relay as a summary. The Public Policy Program was very helpful in helping me craft this skill, as it always emphasized real world experiences throughout the coursework. 

What is one thing that someone with no legislative experience would be surprised to learn about working a legislative role in the City of Philadelphia? 

 While there are some folks who have specific expertise in certain issues, such as housing, planning, sustainability, or economic development, most legislative staff, with myself included, are tasked with being able to cover any issue that comes across a Council office. Luckily, we are often supported by outside experts, such as advocates and research institutions. For example, while my team collaborated on the legislation creating the Philadelphia Retirement Savings Program, a soon to be implemented automatic retirement savings program for employees in Philadelphia who do not have access to retirement savings through their employer, we often consulted a retirement expert from Pew, which was invaluable to the process. In my role, you have to be able to jump from one issue to the next quickly, and get up to speed on a topic you may not have much expertise in. 

 What advice do you have for current Public Policy students who hope to pursue a similar career path? 

I would say that if you are interested in pursuing a career in local government, to keep your options open and not to rule any prospect out. Often, once you have a foot in the door, your network and future prospects open up tremendously. I pursued the part-time fellowship with City Council in lieu of a full-time position as I had been originally opting for, and thankfully proved myself enough to turn that part-time fellowship into a full-time position with the office. 

There are so many opportunities within city government to pursue, and you are not locked into anything you start off in. You can get experience working in a role even if it may not be your first choice or passion, and use that role to build relationships and connections. The City has some really innovative programs that you may not hear about, but stumble on once you already are involved in one sector. And definitely stay connected with any professors, guest speakers, or fellow students you aligned with during your time in the Temple MPP program, as it is a great network to rely on. I work with several MPP alumni currently and it is great to know we have that shared experience!