He has pledged to start calling businesses today to pitch the idea of hiring students for summer jobs.

The mayor has joined forces with the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, Philadelphia Youth Network and WorkReady to announce a campaign to lobby companies to fund at least 2,000 summer jobs this year.

That is twice the goal that WorkReady sought last summer, which it exceeded.

Besides calling employers, Nutter also said the city would increase the number of city government summer jobs by 100 this year.

"We will not ask the businesses to do anything that we won't do," Nutter said yesterday at a news conference at the chamber's offices at Broad and Walnut streets.

He said students exposed to work are more likely to graduate high school and to go on to college than those who are not exposed to work.

Mark Schweiker, president and chief executive of the chamber, said it's not too early to ask employers to hire teens for the summer. So far, 400 jobs have been pledged, not counting Nutter's pledge of 100.

Schweiker also said businesses in the region that may not have jobs for teens could also provide money so that nonprofit agencies can hire interns.

Joe Frick, president and CEO of Independence Blue Cross, said his company will hire 50 interns - the same number it hired last summer - and also pay for an additional 62 jobs at nonprofit organizations.

Two students spoke at the news conference about what they gained from their summer jobs last year.

Andre Howard, 17, a junior at George Washington Carver High School for Engineering and Science, worked in the mail room of the Stradley Ronon law firm. He wants to run his own computer-engineering firm one day.

He said his job gave him confidence and taught him how the corporate world worked. "Who knew you could learn so much by starting in the mail room?" said Howard.

Shalea Nicholson, a senior at Carver, worked at Pennoni and Associates, an engineering firm that she said "trusted me" with important work.

Nicholson said she has been accepted at Bennett College in the fall. The Germantown resident plans to major in engineering and then attend law school.

She urged employers to give other teens a chance to work. Besides what they will learn, she said, "it may take their minds off of all the negative" things going on in the city.

To learn more, young people ages 14 to 21 or their families, may call the WorkReady summer programs hot line at 267-502-3742. Employers may go to www.workreadyphila.org. *