Groundskeeper I

Please note that references provided at the time of application for staff positions will not be contacted until the applicant has been offered the position.

Description:

Join Our Team as a Groundskeeper at Berea College!

Are you passionate about working in an environment where your efforts will help create a welcoming, safe, and attractive space for the campus community? Berea College is hiring for a Groundskeeper I. This is an entry level position involved in performing all aspects of seasonal grounds operations such as trash pickup, mowing, trimming, edging, planting and snow and ice control. The level of the groundskeeper job title is dictated by the forementioned education, experience, and special skills, knowledge, and abilities. In addition, the incumbent will plant and maintain landscaped areas. The position is also responsible for providing routine maintenance of trees, other plants, and hard surfaces.

Your Key Responsibilities:

• Entry level position that performs all aspects of grounds maintenance including; mowing, trimming, edging, weed control and removal, seeding, fertilizing, grounds clean-up including leaf removal, and snow and ice control operations.
• Use best management practices to maintain a “zone” on campus for safety, cleanliness, landscape health and aesthetics
• Perform basic routine equipment maintenance
• Continue to learn and grow as a professional in the landscaping industry
• In support of Berea College’s great commitments this position requires student supervision. The fourth great commitment is to promote learning and serving in community through the student labor program, honoring the dignity and utility of all work, mental and manual, and taking pride in work well done. The Supervision would include scheduling, assigning and approving work performed. Developing students about common workplace acumen and giving them tangible work experience is an expected outcome. To learn more about the student labor program and requirements on this position see: Labor Program Goals

What You'll Bring:

Education required to ensure success in this position:

• High School Diploma/GED

• Entry level - 0-3 years’ experience in grounds, landscape, or turf maintenance

• Basic, beginner level knowledge of grounds maintenance and landscaping tools and materials
• Ability to safely operate all types of grounds and landscaping equipment
• Computer/tablet literacy
• Ability to establish and maintain a collaborative working relationship with others
• Ability to read and interpret documents such as equipment maintenance manuals, landscape diagrams and or drawings
• Ability to prioritize work and work orders
• Ability to handle multiple tasks at the same time

• Valid Driver’s License

• Physical capability for manual labor
• Ability to lift 50 pounds
• Ability to work in extreme conditions
• Ability to navigate and traverse campus by foot

• Working outside in weather extremes- sun and heat, rain, snow, cold temperatures;
• Working around hazardous equipment- lifts, tractors, front loaders, chain saws, mowers, etc.;
• Working in dangerous conditions- storms, trees, etc.;
• Working in garage- loud, dusty, greasy conditions.

Founded in 1855, Berea College is nationally recognized as the first coeducational and interracial college in the South. Berea has a longstanding commitment to interracial education and is one of the most racially diverse private liberal arts colleges in the United States. With an emphasis on service to Appalachia and beyond, Berea enrolls more than 1,500 students from 46 states and U.S. territories and more than 70 countries. Berea College admits students who are unable to afford tuition and provides all of them with a no-tuition promise, valued at more than $204,000. Berea’s students excel in the College’s supportive yet demanding academic environment, and most are the first in their families to attend college. As one of only nine federally recognized Work Colleges, all Berea students are expected to work 10-12 hours weekly in various positions across campus. Berea College is listed #20 in overall ranking in the U.S. by the Wall Street Journal/College Pulse college rankings, 2023. The Washington Monthly ranks Berea College #2 Best Liberal Arts College and #1 in Social Mobility, 2023. Money Magazine ranks Berea #20 Best Overall College and #10 for Best in the South, 2023. Berea College is also the only institution in Kentucky to receive the 5-Star Rating from Money Magazine, 2023.

Located where the Bluegrass Region meets the Cumberland Mountains, the town of Berea (pop. 16,000) lies forty miles south of Lexington and is approximately two hours from Cincinnati, Louisville, and Knoxville. More information about Berea College is available at www.berea.edu.

Berea College, in light of its mission in the tradition of impartial love and social equality, welcomes all people of the earth to learn and work here.

Berea College is always looking for talented, self-motivated individuals to join our team.


Berea College is an Equal Opportunity Employer that recruits and hires qualified candidates without regard to race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, disability, or veteran status.

Our Benefits:
Berea College offers a comprehensive benefits package to eligible employees and their families including health care, dental, vision, retirement, health savings accounts, flexible spending accounts, life insurance, short-term disability, long-term disability and an Employee Assistance Program. The benefit package also includes access to the Child Development Laboratory for children of College Staff, ages 6 weeks to 6 years, Seabury Center Membership, Staff Development Funds and Tuition Reimbursement.

Eligible staff employees also receive paid holidays, vacation, and sick leave.

Part-time employees who work an average of 24 hours per week over the course of a year, receive benefits on a pro-rated basis.