Grounds Maintenance Technician

Sierra College has a strong commitment to the achievement of equity and inclusion among its faculty, staff, and students and values the rich, diverse backgrounds that make up the campus community. A strong candidate for this position must have the understanding and ability to successfully support individuals with varying backgrounds. This includes persons with disabilities, various gender identities and sexual orientations, as well as individuals from historically underrepresented communities and other groups. Our District is committed to providing strategies for success and proactive student-centered practices and policies focused on eliminating equity gaps to ensure the District provides an inclusive educational and employment environment focused on strategies for success and equitable outcomes for all.

SUMMARY DESCRIPTION

Under general supervision, performs a variety of skilled work in the preparation and maintenance of grounds and athletic fields; installs, maintains, and repairs irrigation systems; constructs and maintains special landscaping or public use areas, including, but not limited to, trails, forested areas, meadows, play yards, parking lots, roads, and meridians.

REPRESENTATIVE DUTIES

The following duties are typical for this classification. Incumbents may not perform all of the listed duties and/or may be required to perform additional or different duties from those set forth below to address business needs and changing business practices.

1. Performs scheduled operational checks, preventative maintenance, and routine servicing of groundskeeping equipment, including hand and power tools, mechanical devices, and engines and bodies of rolling stock.
2. Installs two-wire and conventional irrigation systems; repairs and replaces landscape irrigation systems following and interpreting blueprints, sketches, or verbal instructions; designs and prepares plans for irrigation systems and makes necessary changes to blueprints for irrigation system design compliance and to locate shutoff valves, irrigation valves, and physical layouts.
3. Adjusts, maintains, and repairs electronic timers; installs, inspects, and performs major repairs to valves and controllers; replaces and repairs a wide variety of sprinkler heads and lines by removing, disassembling, and replacing worn or broken parts.
4. Keeps District roadways and parking lots free of litter and debris; coordinates with appropriate staff regarding purchase and installation of asphalt, paint, signs, sign poles, concrete, and asphalt patch; stripes/paint parking lots, roadways, and curbs; installs replaces, repairs, and/or relocates traffic control signs and posts, concrete bumpers, and roadway control exit barriers; keep tree branches from obstructing the view of traffic and signs; removes graffiti; coordinates with appropriate staff regarding cleanup of hazardous materials; sets up traffic cones and barricades.
5. Selects, plants, stakes, prunes, and thins and trims trees, ornamental plants, shrubs, ground covers, annuals, and bulbs, and mows, grooms, fertilizes, and replants turf and various landscaped areas to accomplish landscaping objectives; may remove trees or branches for safety in wooded areas, as needed; may assist with oversight of fire mitigation work by vendors; maintains and/or provides specialty pruning in commemorative gardens, arboretum, and Cactus Garden.
6. Removes weeds, trash, and debris from walkways, roadways, and other areas; maintains in-ground drains and culverts.
7. Operates combination front loader/backhoe, trenchers, dump trucks, street sweepers, and equivalent machinery; inspects machinery before use to ensure proper servicing and safe operating conditions.
8. Inspects and diagnoses equipment malfunctions, and performs minor to complex repairs and rebuilds to equipment including, but not limited to, small engines, fuel and cooling systems, electrical components, running gears, suspensions, and internal and external components on two and fourcycle gasoline and diesel engines; performs emergency equipment repairs, including clutches, pulleys, blades, tires/wheels, oil changes, lubes, tune-up services, replacing heads, sharpening trimmers and chainsaws.
9. Maintains adequate inventories of ground maintenance tools, parts, and equipment; maintains records of purchases; maintains work order records and various logs, including equipment logs, supply logs, and maintenance logs.
10. Operates snow removal equipment to remove snow on roadways, sidewalks, and parking lots.
11. Applies fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides to areas; places postings where pesticides are being applied; disposes of product containers per instructions and applicable environmental regulations; applies biological or organic controls for pests and weeds; sets calibration on tank sprayers, drop spreaders, and wheel driven spreaders.
12. Interacts and coordinates with Kinesiology faculty members regarding classroom setup and maintenance in District athletic fields/areas; constructs set up, takes down, maintains, and repairs athletic activity courses, tracks, ranges, fields, and other equipment.
13. Operates string trimmers, blowers, mowers, hedgers, weeders, sprayers, and an array of common power tools.
14. Serves as a resource on landscape and horticultural matters; may plan, draw, and prepare land changes to conform to desired landscaping goals.
15. Maintains athletic fields, areas, surfaces, and outdoor classrooms in a safe and usable condition; mows, grooms, contours, paints, and lines athletic and public use play fields to comply with required dimensions.
16. Monitors and diagnoses weed, disease, and pest problems in athletic fields, taking appropriate measures to mitigate or eliminate problems; maintains current knowledge of safe pesticide or herbicide application.
17. Operates specialized and demanding equipment and machinery to dig, contour, level, cut, fill, trench, and excavate grounds to construct special land uses such as athletic fields and pedestrian parks.
18. Drains, flushes, cleans, and repairs water storage reservoirs and irrigation boxes from water sources on a periodic basis; performs maintenance on fire hydrants; assists with the installation of new water lines.
19. Coordinates with various organizational units and external groups for event support and logistics.
20. Maintains current Safety Data Sheets for potentially hazardous materials.
21. Provides onboarding support, general work training, guidance, supervision assistance, and directs activities of students or temporary employees, including use of specialized and heavy equipment.
22. Assists with setting up signs, scoreboards, goals, clocks, benches, trash cans, public address systems, and bleachers for athletic or other events.
23. Notifies Community Safety Department of suspicious activity and/or persons in need of assistance.
24. Performs related duties that support the overall objective of the position.

Minimum Qualifications

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE GUIDELINES

Any combination of education and experience that demonstrates the required above knowledge and abilities is qualifying. Examples of ways to obtain the above knowledge and abilities could include, but are not limited to, the following:

Education/Training

• Equivalent to the completion of the twelfth grade or General Educational Development (GED).

Experience

• Two years of experience in grounds maintenance.

License/Certificate

• Possession of, or ability to obtain within a reasonable timeframe, each of the following:
• Valid California Driver's License.
• Asbestos Awareness Training Certificate.
• Bloodborne Pathogens Exposure Control Program Certificate.
• Forklift Certificate.
• Hazardous Materials Awareness Certificate.

QUALIFICATIONS

The following generally describes the knowledge and ability required to enter the job and/or be learned within a short period of time in order to successfully perform the assigned duties.

Knowledge of:

• Methods, procedures, and techniques of grounds maintenance.
• Turf management and maintenance practices and techniques, including preparation of athletic fields.
• Methods of planting, cultivating, pruning, and caring for plants, trees, and lawns, including diseases, pests, and their biological and chemical controls.
• Irrigation system design, installation, and operation through a central control system.
• Techniques for roadway and sidewalk repair and upkeep.
• Basic MIG, arc, and acetylene/oxygen welding techniques.

Ability to:

• Plant, cultivate, and prune for plants, trees, and lawns, including athletic field preparation and maintenance.
• Operate trucks, forklifts, and groundskeeping and maintenance equipment, including hand and power tools.
• Use tools to clean, repair, and maintain groundskeeping equipment.
• Perform roadway and sidewalk repairs.
• Design, install, operate, maintain, and repair irrigation systems.
• Repair pumps and motors used in irrigation systems and gasoline engines used in mowers and other power equipment.
• Practice safety precautions, techniques, and procedures, including safe lifting techniques, and safe handling, storage, and disposal of hazardous materials, including fertilizers, herbicides, and pesticides.
• Read and interprets sketches, blueprints, and schematics.
• Perform basic recordkeeping functions.
• Uses computer and related technology sufficiently to perform the duties of the classification, including software or web-based work order system, to receive and report work needed and work completed.
• Communicate clearly and concisely, both orally and in writing including, but not limited to, electronic communications via District assigned smartphone or Personal Computer (PC).
• Follow oral and written directions.
• Provide onboarding support, general work training, guidance, supervision assistance, and direct activities of students or temporary employees.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships with those contacted in the course of work.
• Work independently and collaboratively.
• Apply District policies and procedures

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORKING ENVIRONMENT

The conditions herein are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions.

Environment:

Work is performed in both indoor and outdoor environments; travel from site to site; exposure to noise, dust, grease, smoke, fumes, noxious odors, and gases; work and/or walk on various types of surfaces, including slippery or uneven surfaces. Positions may be required to work evenings, nights, and weekends.

Physical:

Primary functions require sufficient physical ability and mobility to perform moderately strenuous manual labor; to stoop, bend, kneel, crouch, reach, and twist; to lift, carry, push, and/or pull moderate to heavy amounts of weight; dexterity of hands and fingers to operate specialized hand and power tools and equipment; operate assigned equipment; to stand and walk for extended periods of time, and to verbally communicate to exchange information.

Vision:

See in the normal visual range with or without correction.

Hearing:

Hear in the normal audio range with or without correction.