Description:
Summary: Consistent with the school's mission, vision, values, and strategic priorities, this position is responsible for the leadership, operation, maintenance, safety, security coordination, and long-range stewardship of The Maryland School for the Blind's 96-acre campus and approximately 30 buildings. The Director ensures that academic, residential, recreational, administrative, and support environments are safe, clean, accessible, reliable, and ready to support students and staff. The position reports to the Superintendent, serves as a member of the Senior Leadership Team, and provides both hands-on operational leadership and strategic planning for facilities maintenance, housekeeping, grounds, security, fleet, vendor and contractor relationships, budgets, emergency response systems, and coordination with the Campus Master Plan.
Essential Functions: Has full responsibilities for providing:
- Leadership and Campus Planning. Provides direction and oversight for campus operations, physical plant conditions, campus infrastructure, security systems, fleet, equipment, and support services in compliance with applicable regulatory standards and MSB policies. Serves as a strategic advisor to the Superintendent and Senior Leadership Team on campus condition, operational priorities, capital needs, safety, accessibility, risk, and long-range asset stewardship. Aligns campus operations with MSB's programs, residential needs, and strategic priorities.
- Facilities Operations and Maintenance. Provides overall leadership for maintenance, repair, cleanliness, and continuous improvement of buildings, grounds, infrastructure, and equipment. Oversees preventive and corrective maintenance programs for HVAC, electrical, plumbing, life-safety systems, fire alarm and suppression systems, building automation systems, generators, roofs, building envelopes, elevators where applicable, and other major building systems. Ensures the Facilities Director and related supervisors maintain effective standards for work orders, preventive maintenance, custodial service, housekeeping, laundry, grounds, seasonal operations, snow and ice removal, and campus readiness.
- Planning, CMMS, and Record Keeping. Ensures effective use of the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) and related work-order systems to schedule, track, prioritize, and document maintenance, inspections, preventive maintenance, equipment histories, repairs, safety testing, and service performance. Maintains accurate records and uses facilities data to identify trends, reduce reactive repairs, prioritize deferred maintenance, and support budget and capital planning.
- Safety, Security, and Emergency Management. Provides overall leadership for campus safety, security operations, and emergency readiness through supervision of the Security Director and coordination with appropriate internal and external partners. Oversees access control, camera systems, visitor management, perimeter security, emergency response systems, security audits, inspections, drills, incident response procedures, and coordination with police, fire, emergency medical services, local emergency management, and other agencies. Ensures MSB maintains practical and accessible emergency procedures for students, residents, staff, visitors, and contractors.
- Capital Projects and Campus Master Plan. Serves as MSB's internal operational lead for campus renovation, renewal, repair, and construction projects. Coordinates with the Owner's Representative, architects, engineers, contractors, school leadership, and affected departments to ensure that institutional needs and operational impacts are addressed. Participates in project scope development, design review, value engineering, construction coordination, sequencing, utility interruption planning, move and transition planning, punch-list review, closeout, commissioning, warranties, and staff training. The Owner's Representative manages construction directly; this position represents MSB's operational interests and helps ensure projects are safe, maintainable, accessible, durable, and aligned with long-term campus needs.
- Budget, Contracts, and Fiscal Responsibility. Participates in the preparation and administration of operating budgets for campus operations, facilities maintenance, security, fleet, and related support services. Submits prioritized budget recommendations, helps develop scope documents, coordinates cost estimates and quotes, reviews and approves emergency repair needs within assigned authority, tracks expenditures, and monitors budget-to-actual performance. Administers vendor contracts, service agreements, and contractor relationships in coordination with Finance and Procurement, and monitors vendor performance, invoices, deliverables, and compliance.
- Fleet Management. Provides overall leadership for maintenance, repair, safety inspection, record keeping, and replacement planning for MSB's fleet of approximately 20 vehicles, including vans, buses, cars, maintenance vehicles, and related equipment. Oversees the on-staff auto repair specialist and outside vendors to ensure timely maintenance, accurate service records, safety readiness, regulatory compliance where applicable, and long-range budget planning for repair and replacement.
- Accessibility and Specialized School Considerations. Ensures that facilities operations, repairs, renovations, emergency procedures, security systems, construction coordination, and campus planning appropriately consider students who are blind, low vision, deafblind, medically complex, residential, and/or use wheelchairs, white canes, or orientation and mobility supports. Works with educational, residential, health services, and orientation and mobility staff to maintain safe travel routes, accessible pathways, predictable circulation, clear entrances, appropriate signage and wayfinding supports, construction barriers, snow and ice response, and other campus conditions that support student safety, independence, and dignity.
- Supervision and Professional Development. Directly supervises the Maintenance Supervisor, Security Supervisor, Environmental Services Supervisor and other assigned supervisors and staff. Provides clear delegation, performance expectations, accountability, coaching, evaluation, and staff development. Ensures departmental staff receive appropriate technical, safety, emergency response, accessibility, compliance, and customer-service training. Builds bench strength within the department and promotes cross-functional coordination with school, residential, administrative, and statewide services leaders.
- Compliance and Risk Management. Ensures that campus operations, security, maintenance, fleet, construction coordination, and support services are performed in a manner consistent with federal, state, and local laws, codes, regulations, MSB policies, and student protection expectations. Monitors compliance related to OSHA, life safety systems, fire code, ADA accessibility, environmental requirements, vehicle requirements, emergency preparedness, mandatory reporting, and other applicable standards. Works with school leadership to identify, communicate, and reduce operational risk.
Other Duties: Performs other related duties as assigned. This position description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed and is not an exhaustive list of all responsibilities, duties, or requirements.
Requirements:
Conditions:
- Work Schedule. 12-month schedule with a minimum of 37.5 hours per week, Monday through Friday. Additional time is expected as needed to fulfill responsibilities, support major projects, attend meetings, respond to weather or emergency events, and ensure continuity of campus operations.
- Essential Personnel and On-Call Coverage. This position is expected to develop, maintain, and participate in a system for 24/7/365 on-call coverage to respond to emergency situations by telephone or physical presence. Evening, weekend, holiday, and severe-weather response may be required.
- Work Environment. Work is performed in offices, classrooms, residential areas, mechanical spaces, construction areas, campus grounds, roadways, parking areas, and other indoor and outdoor settings. The position may involve exposure to weather, active construction zones, mechanical equipment, noise, dust, and other typical facilities or emergency-response conditions.
- Physical Requirements. With or without reasonable accommodation, the employee must be able to perform the essential functions of the position, including moving throughout a large campus; inspecting buildings, grounds, mechanical areas, and construction locations; using stairs; reviewing plans and records; communicating clearly with staff, contractors, and emergency responders; and responding to urgent campus needs. Occasional bending, reaching, climbing, lifting, or carrying may be required when inspecting or responding to operational conditions.
Qualifications:
1. Ten years of progressively responsible experience in facilities management, campus operations, physical plant management, construction coordination, or a related field, with at least five years supervising employees, supervisors, or teams engaged in maintenance, building systems, construction trades, security, fleet, or related operations.
2. Bachelor's degree in facilities management, engineering, construction management, business administration, public administration, or a related field preferred. Substantial directly related experience may be considered in lieu of a degree.
3. Experience in a complex multi-building environment. Experience in a school, residential program, higher education setting, healthcare-adjacent facility, nonprofit campus, hospital, assisted living facility, or long-term care facility preferred.
4. Strong working knowledge of complex campus facilities operations, including building maintenance, repair, controls, equipment, infrastructure, grounds, custodial/housekeeping services, preventive maintenance, and work-order management.
5. Knowledge of building systems and maintenance practices, including installation, alteration, renovation, repair, building envelopes, interior spaces, HVAC, electrical, plumbing, life-safety systems, and building automation systems.
6. Experience coordinating capital projects, renovations, repair projects, vendor work, service agreements, and contractor performance. Ability to read and interpret blueprints, specifications, mechanical/electrical/plumbing drawings, project schedules, cost estimates, and related technical documents.
7. Experience developing, communicating, and supporting public safety, security, emergency management, and incident response programs preferred, including experience with access control, camera systems, visitor management, drills, emergency procedures, and coordination with local responders.
8. Experience handling crisis situations requiring sound judgment, clear communication, quick and firm decision-making, and timely follow-through.
9. Demonstrated ability to prepare and monitor operating budgets, support capital budget planning, prioritize repair needs, review quotes and invoices, manage vendor relationships, and make fiscally responsible recommendations.
10. Knowledge of supervisory principles, practices, and procedures, including delegation, performance management, accountability, coaching, professional development, and employee relations in coordination with Human Resources.
11. Ability to communicate clearly with senior leadership, board committee members when needed, staff, contractors, students, families, regulators, and emergency responders, including translating technical facilities issues into practical recommendations.
12. Commitment to student safety, accessibility, dignity, and independence, including an understanding of how campus operations affect students who are blind, low vision, deafblind, medically complex, residential, and/or use wheelchairs, white canes, or orientation and mobility supports.
13. Valid driver's license and driving record that meets MSB's insurance and risk management requirements. Successful completion of all required background checks, child protection requirements, and other conditions of MSB employment.
Preferred credentials and training:
1. Certified Facility Manager (CFM), Facilities Management Professional (FMP), Certified Educational Facilities Professional (CEFP), Project Management Professional (PMP), LEED credential, Certified Energy Manager (CEM), or similar credential.
2. Emergency management training such as FEMA/ICS coursework or comparable crisis-response training.
3. Experience with CMMS/work-order systems, building automation systems, security technology systems, capital renewal planning, deferred maintenance planning, and energy or utility management.
After six months in this position, the employee is required to have:
1. First Aid, CPR, and AED Certification.
2. OSHA 30-hour Certification.
Equal Opportunity / Non-Discrimination Statement: The Maryland School for the Blind is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, sex, age, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital status, genetic information, veteran status, disability, or any other status protected by applicable law. Reasonable accommodations are available to qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the position.
