Summer interns pitch in at Public Works

July 27, 2016 - As far as summer jobs go, Charles Lara seems to have hit the jackpot.

Lara, a 2014 graduate of Oak Park and River Forest High School, is spending the summer break before his final semester at Triton College working as an intern in the Village of Oak Park’s Fleet Services Division. With the role comes a wide variety of projects ranging from servicing a fire truck and disassembling parts of an ambulance to assisting with the graphic design of vehicle decals and performing a full inventory of the division’s parts.

“Being behind the scenes and seeing all the work that is done is really cool,” Lara said. “I’m a hard worker and I put in 100 percent into anything I do, even if it’s sweeping the floors. I’ve really enjoyed everything I’ve done here the past few months.”

Lara is one of nine college students fulfilling internships with the Village’s Public Works Department this summer. As Public Works director John Wielebnicki explains, having extra hands available in the engineering, streets, fleet and water & sewer divisions is a win-win for everyone involved.

“Whether they are doing brush pick up, filling potholes or clearing street inlets, the internship program is a big help as it provides additional resources to our staff,” Wielebnicki said. “For the interns, these are great summer jobs, and I believe they find it rewarding, particularly when they are doing an internship in their area of study.”

This is the case for engineering interns Thomas Considine and Ethan Druszkowski, who are studying civil engineering at University of Illinois-Chicago and Bradley University, respectively.

The bulk of Considine and Druszkowski’s internship is being spent compiling a detailed inventory of sidewalks in need of repair around the Village. The duo also helped monitor the installation of Oak Park’s Divvy bike stations.

“I really like the field experience when we get to go out and see the crews pour concrete and pave the streets,” said Considine, a 2013 graduate of Oak Park and River Forest High School. “We don’t really see that in school when we are just focusing on the science and engineering behind a project.”

Adds Druszkowski: “I’ve found it helpful being in the office and learning the vocabulary the engineers use, which isn’t really covered in our coursework.”

The internship program even has practical application for someone like Lara, who is studying business and accounting, fields not normally associated with fleet services and the world of vehicle repair.

“The inventory aspect of my internship gave me a taste of what I’m studying,” Lara said. “The guys showed me the computer system, how the work orders flow in and how they factor the labor costs. It’s definitely all good for me to know.”

The summer internship program has been included in the Public Works Department’s budget each of the past three years. Five of this summer’s nine interns are graduates of Oak Park and River Forest High School.

Summer internships with the Public Works Department run from late May to early August. Public Works officials typically begin advertising internships in February through regional colleges and universities in hopes of attracting top candidates, and the approach appears to have paid off this year.

“When we have a good intern that can get a lot done, it frees up our employees to focus on the important jobs they are qualified for,” Fleet Services superintendent Ken Crowley said. “Speaking for Fleet Services, we have a really good one this summer in Charles.”

Meet the 2016 Public Works Interns: