{"id":4023,"date":"2026-08-14T10:00:59","date_gmt":"2026-08-14T14:00:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/water.phila.gov\/blog\/?p=4023"},"modified":"2026-08-13T07:59:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-13T11:59:11","slug":"pwd-intern-spotlight-robert-r-petrone","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/water.phila.gov\/blog\/pwd-intern-spotlight-robert-r-petrone\/","title":{"rendered":"PWD Intern Spotlight: Robert R. Petrone"},"content":{"rendered":"

Every year, PWD welcomes a select number of undergraduate interns to spend the summer gaining hands-on experience and learning about the department’s operations and opportunities. Today, we’ll talk with one of this year’s interns, Robert Petrone, who has been working with PWD’s Green Stormwater Operations team this summer.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\"\"<\/a><\/div>\n
\n
Name:<\/h6>\n

Robert R. Petrone<\/p>\n

Major and School:<\/h6>\n

Landscape Architecture, Thomas Jefferson University (graduating May 2027)<\/p>\n

PWD Unit:<\/h6>\n

Green Stormwater Operations (GSO)<\/p>\n

Internship Length:<\/h6>\n

Summer, June 1 – August 14\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n
What are your career goals?<\/h5>\n

My career goal is to design sustainable landscapes and public spaces that improve people’s everyday lives. Interning as a landscape architect with the Philadelphia Water Department’s Green Stormwater Operations team gave me a deeper understanding of how landscape design can address environmental challenges like flooding and water pollution. Having grown up in Philadelphia, I’ve seen firsthand how green spaces can improve a community’s wellbeing, and I hope to design riverfront landscapes and parks that do exactly that.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What’s one thing you didn’t know about the Philadelphia Water Department before interning here?<\/h5>\n

Before interning here, I didn’t realize how many sectors make up PWD, each tackling a different piece of the puzzle, or how seamlessly they work together to serve a city this large. I was also struck by how welcoming everyone was, from introducing me to fellow interns to showing me around the department’s many facilities. It gave me a much clearer picture of the scale PWD operates at.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What project or experience gave you a new appreciation for the work PWD does?<\/h5>\n

Learning about the Stormwater Management Practices used by GSO gave me a new appreciation for the work PWD does, practices like rain gardens, bumpouts, tree trenches, and wetlands, which the team maintains across more than 2,000 SMPs (stormwater management projects) citywide. Driving around to tag weeds, inspect components, and see how work orders come together showed me just how many teams it takes to keep a single SMP running: surveyors, designers, external contractors, GSO staff, maintenance crews, and public communications.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What do you enjoy most about working at PWD?<\/h5>\n

What I enjoy most about working at PWD is the teamwork, communication, and friendliness of my colleagues. Everyone was willing to explain the daily operations thoroughly, which let me get the most out of this experience, and they brought a genuine positive energy to demanding work. My supervisors also took the time to talk through my career path and review my resume with me, which meant a lot.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What skills have you developed that you’ll take with you into your career?<\/h5>\n

The skills I’ve developed during this internship that I’ll take with me into my career include inspecting and maintaining green infrastructure to keep it effective, collaborating with public sector staff and environmental professionals across disciplines, and rethinking how underperforming projects can be redesigned to better suit site conditions. I also gained confidence in plant identification, learning to recognize a wide range of trees, shrubs, grasses, and weeds.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

What advice would you give to another student considering an internship?<\/h5>\n

My advice to another student considering an internship would be to take full advantage of every opportunity: sit in on meetings, go out in the field, and meet people across different roles. Ask questions and try to understand how the department operates rather than just completing assigned tasks. Notice the problems you encounter along the way and bring them to your supervisors; an outside perspective is always valuable. And don’t be afraid to ask for help or advice on how to move your career forward.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Meet Robert Petrone, one of PWD’s 2026 summer interns, who has been working with PWD’s Green Stormwater Operations team since the beginning of June.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":26,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_relevanssi_hide_post":"","_relevanssi_hide_content":"","_relevanssi_pin_for_all":"","_relevanssi_pin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_unpin_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_keywords":"","_relevanssi_related_include_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_exclude_ids":"","_relevanssi_related_no_append":"","_relevanssi_related_not_related":"","_relevanssi_related_posts":"","_relevanssi_noindex_reason":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[32,558,44,95],"class_list":["post-4023","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-community","tag-education","tag-employee-spotlight","tag-green-infrastructure","tag-stormwater","wpautop"],"acf":{"suggested":null},"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","canonical_url":"https:\/\/phila.gov\/blog\/pwd-intern-spotlight-robert-r-petrone\/","smart_links":{"inbound":0,"outbound":0},"traffic_boost_suggestions_count":0,"meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"PWD Intern Spotlight: Robert R. Petrone","url":"http:\/\/water.phila.gov\/blog\/pwd-intern-spotlight-robert-r-petrone\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/water.phila.gov\/blog\/pwd-intern-spotlight-robert-r-petrone\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":""},"articleSection":"Community","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Justin Martin"}],"creator":["Justin Martin"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"@PhillyH2O Blog","logo":""},"keywords":["education","employee spotlight","green infrastructure","stormwater"],"dateCreated":"2026-08-14T14:00:59Z","datePublished":"2026-08-14T14:00:59Z","dateModified":"2026-08-14T14:00:59Z"},"rendered":"