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Athletics Groundskeeper III/Group Leader

Employer
Michigan State University
Location
East Lansing

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Administrative Jobs
Institutional & Business Affairs, Athletics
Employment Type
Full Time
Institution Type
Four-Year Institution
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Job Details

Job no: 738889
Work type: Support Staff
Pay Grade: 20
Major Administrative Unit / College: President
Department: Intercollegiate Athletics 10070478
Sub Area: 1585- Service Maint.
Salary: 22.52
Location: East Lansing
Categories: Athletics/Recreation, Service Maintenance- 1585, Full Time (90-100%), Union
Position Summary

Oversees and performs in the care and maintenance of Division 1 varsity athletic fields, facilities and grounds. Provides leadership and expert knowledge to a group of workers engaged in regularly scheduled field maintenance procedures within MSU Athletics. Coordinates and interacts with athletic department staff and coaches. Acts as a lead worker over a group of assigned groundskeepers and related staff in the absence of the supervisor. Other responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

  • Identifies, prioritizes and implements course of action in all aspects of athletic field management including mowing, fertilizing, pesticide applications, moisture management, aeration, top dressing, restoration practices, field painting, field tarping, field snow removal, baseball and softball skin/field maintenance, artificial turf infill systems, and sand based athletic field systems.
  • Implements ongoing field management programs for all MSU varsity athletic fields.
  • Provides expert turf management maintenance practices to low mow Kentucky Bluegrass athletic fields.
  • Identifies, recommends and/or remedies problems specific to athletic fields including, but not limited to, natural and artificial turf surfaces, clay infields, pitchers’ mounds, home plate areas, warning tracks, and goal mouths.
  • Identifies and/or recommends solutions for turfgrass problems in the areas of turfgrass disease, fertility, irrigation, soil profiles, insects, weeds and overall plant health.
  • Provides expert knowledge and leadership on various types of athletic field related equipment such as tarps, goals, nets, padding, and uprights.
  • Analyzes soil formation and soil profiles to make daily decisions on field status.
  • Tracks inventory of all field related materials such as fertilizer, pesticides, seed, skin material, paint supplies, clay, and irrigation parts.
  • Interprets work instructions and determines the time and sequence of operations to ensure on time completion. Moves, sets up, and repairs, all portable athletic equipment such as goals, uprights, hurdles, bars, obstacles, facility padding, practice screens, gymnastic, volleyball nets, basketball baskets, and wrestling equipment.
  • Evaluates irrigation needs daily to maintain peak irrigation system design and implementation.
  • Coordinates and interacts with Athletic Department staff and coaches on field playability and needs.
  • Analyzes weather data and makes comprehensive field related decisions regarding turf management practices and field preparations.
  • Responsible for artificial turf infill systems maintenance and repair.
  • Utilizes best use practices of current products and technologies within turf management.
  • Responsible for making quick decisions/adjustments to turf management and field preparation strategies based on changes in schedule, weather, and other unforeseen circumstances.
  • Maintains record keeping of various turfgrass related data including pesticide applications, fertilizer applications, soil moisture and temperatures, soil profiles, and irrigations strategies.
  • Utilizes field heating systems at McLane Stadium and Secchia Stadium.
  • Measures and paints layout of Spartan Stadium football field and all other MSU varsity athletic fields.
  • Provides field/event set up for Division 1 College Athletic events.
  • Assigns and checks work of assigned support staff employees.
  • Instructs and demonstrates turf management work methods and processes to assigned support staff employees.
  • Provides leadership to staff on various projects and daily tasks.
  • Supervises staff in absence of turf manager.
  • Participates in the snow removal from athletic fields in a manner that minimizes material displacement and damage to playing surface.
  • Operation and maintenance of a wide range of specialized athletic field maintenance equipment and tools.
    • Unit Specific Education/Experience/Skills
    • Completion of a high school education or an equivalent combination of technical training and experience.
    • Three years satisfactory work experience as an Athletics Groundskeeper II; or an equivalent combination of technical training and experience at a professional or collegiate sports turf facility leading and overseeing groundskeepers.
    • Expert knowledge of the tools, equipment, methods, and materials used in athletic field and grounds maintenance.
    • Expert knowledge of turf grass diseases, insect problems, and weed management.
    • Possession of a two-year sports turf management certificate or the equivalent from an accredited college or university.
    • Possession of a Sports Turf Managers Association, Certified Sports Turf Manager (STMA CSFM) certification.
    • Possession or attainment of prior to the completion of applicable trial or probationary period of a Michigan Pesticide Applicators Certificate with categories 3A, 3B and 6.
    • Possession or attainment prior to the completion of applicable trial or probation period of an MSU Aerial lift permit.
    • Possession or attainment of prior to the completion of applicable trial or probationary period of MSU Forklift, Toolcat, Tractor, and Loader operator’s permit.
    • Possession of a valid vehicle operator's license
    • The ability to work in variable or severe weather conditions.
    • Frequent lifting of 26 to 75 pounds and occasional lifting of over 75 pounds is required.
    Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

    All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, disability or protected veteran status.

    Together-we-will StatementThe university is requiring all MSU students, faculty and staff to be vaccinated against COVID-19 with limited exceptions. Learn more at: https://msu.edu/together-we-will/Work Hours

    May include nights and weekends

    Building Location

    SPARTAN STADIUM

    Summary of Physical Demands

    Liftin and moving turf equipment

    Summary of Health Risks

    Working with pesticides

    Bidding Eligibility ends 10/12/2021 at 11:55 PM

    Advertised: Oct 18, 2021 Eastern Daylight Time
    Applications close: Oct 25, 2021 Eastern Daylight Time

    Organization

    Working at Michigan State University 

    Spartans work every day to advance the common good in uncommon ways.

    Together, we tackle some of the world’s toughest problems to find solutions that make life better—from alternative energy to better food safety to breakthrough medical and environmental applications achieved through rare isotope research.

    We teach. We explore and we discover. We collaborate and lead. We innovate, inspire, and empower. We achieve our potential and create circumstances that help our students and others achieve theirs.

    We're good at it, and we've been at it for more than 150 years.

    The nation’s pioneer land-grant university, MSU began as a bold experiment that democratized higher education and helped bring science and innovation into everyday life. The revolutionary concept became a model for the nation.

    Today, MSU is one of the top research universities in the world—on one of the biggest, greenest campuses in the nation. Home to nationally ranked and recognized academic, residential college, and service-learning programs, we’re a diverse community of dedicated students and scholars, athletes and artists, scientists and leaders.

    In ways both practical and profound, we work to create a stronger, more sustainable, and more hopeful future for all.

    Top Distinctions

    U.S. News & World Report ranks MSU

    • 29th among the nation’s public universities
    • First in the nation for 19 years for graduate programs in elementary and secondary education
    • First in the nation for graduate programs in nuclear physics and industrial and organizational psychology
    • First in the nation for undergraduate program in supply chain

    Recognized for 11 consecutive years as one of the top 100 universities in the world by Shanghai Jiao Tong University in its annual Academic Ranking of World Universities

    Ranks 46th among public universities for in-state students in Kiplinger’s 2013 edition of Best Values in Public Colleges

    Silver rating from the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education’s STARS program, which measures and encourages sustainability in education and research; operations; and planning, administration, and engagement

    Member of the prestigious 62-member Association of American Universities

    Only university in the country with on-campus medical schools graduating allopathic (MD) and osteopathic (DO) physicians, and veterinarians (DVMs)

    Among the largest single-campus residence hall system in the country with 27 halls in five neighborhoods and two apartment villages.

     

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