A group of Wayne State students were invited this week to join CNN's Van Jones to weigh in on the recent presidential debates and other political issues, their discussion part of an interview segment scheduled to air on the cable news network on Saturday, Aug. 3. 

The group, made up of students from the Warrior VIP and ReBUILDetroit programs, met with Jones inside the Social Club barbershop on Wayne State's campus on Wednesday evening to share their views on the Democratic presidential candidates, the candidates' performances over two days of debates in Detroit and the students' positions on assorted social and political matters.

"We were invited to talk with him the night before so it was totally unexpected," said 19-year-old junior Miles N. Reuben, a peer mentor in the Warrior VIP program and a film major. "He came to the barbershop and just talked to us and other people there about how we feel about the candidates, who would we choose and how we feel about being black people in Trump's America."

Reuben, who said he spoke to Jones about why he favors Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren in the race among other things, said Jones applauded the students for being political active.

"He told me to keep researching and stay involved," said Reuben. "It was really cool to share my views, especially with CNN."

Other students who joined Reuben included Chinelo Njubigbo, 20, a junior majoring in public health; Gabrielle Gordon, 21, a senior psychology major; and Sarosh Irani, 20, a senior public health major.