Our Team

Joanne is senior advisor at The Water Center at Penn.  She focuses her efforts on alumni and corporate engagement.  Joanne leads efforts to grow the Penn Alumni Water Forum with special events and global outreach to regional clubs. In addition, Joanne acts as an advisor to students for careers and internships. She is available for weekly office hours. In her former roles, Joanne served as Senior Associate Director at the Initiative for Global Environmental Leadership (IGEL) at Wharton.  Joanne was also part of the Communications Office. She held positions as business manager of the Wharton Seminars for Business Journalists and for the Wharton Alumni Magazine. Joanne also served as the media relations coordinator. When with Alitalia Airlines, Joanne worked as a sales representative. Joanne graduated from The University of Pennsylvania with a BA and later graduated from the Wharton Aresty Institute of Executive Education. Joanne has certification in HR Management.  She has a strong background in development, management, marketing, and Italian language and culture. As a Wharton Mentor, she coached new employees on professional development, and is active in Penn’s Grievance panels.  Joanne was on the board of governors for the University Club. Joanne is chair of the Delaware County Penn Alumni Interview Program and oversees alumni volunteers. As an alum of Penn and Wharton, and also a parent of two Penn graduates, she is a strong advocate in promoting Penn. At Wharton IGEL, Joanne had been in partnership with GreenBiz, Sustainable Brands, the Ethical Corporation, Pira Packaging International, Public Relations Society of America, the Green Sports Alliance, World Trade Center of Greater Philadelphia, the Italian Consulate, the Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Sonoma County Winegrowers Association, and the Nature Conservancy, as well as, many other NGO and government offices. She has brokered hundreds of corporate relationships for Wharton. Joanne is the author of her book, White Widow, published on Kindle and Amazon. The book is a fictional novel about 19th-20th Century Italian immigrants. https://www.amazon.com/White-Widow-Joanne-Natale-Spigonardo/dp/B085DT65DB

Joanne most recently served as the Philadelphia Water Department’s Deputy Commissioner for Communications and Engagement (DCCE) and was responsible for developing and implementing strategies that enhanced PWD’s image, services and engagement with its customers, all residents, elected officials, media and key stakeholders. Joanne directed the planning, development and implementation of programs designed to inform and serve water, wastewater and stormwater customers and the public and to increase the PWD’s credibility and accessibility. In October 2019, Joanne established Mayfly Communications, a professional service that specializes in public engagement, education and communications around environmental policies and regulatory challenges with a focus on water resources.

Rui Jiang is currently a graduate student in the Master of Science in Applied Geosciences Program at the University of Pennsylvania, concentrating in Environmental Geology. For her undergrad, Rui graduated from Franklin and Marshall College in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, with a degree in Environmental Sciences. She also conducted undergraduate research to determine the origin of the world’s largest sailing ship ballast piles, driven by her interest in archaeology. Rui hopes to apply her GIS skills and use her knowledge on environmental issues to make the Delaware River “swimmable.” At the same time, while at the Water Center, she wants to gain experience from experts and develop skills for the future.