Sports Turf Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Location : Berea
Job Type: Full-Time
Division: Operations & Sustainability
Department: Facilities Management
Opening Date: 05/01/2026
FLSA: Non-Exempt
Salary Grade: 4
Labor Supervisor?: Yes
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:
The Sports Turf Specialist is responsible for the maintenance and management of high-quality athletic fields, with a strong emphasis on safety, within the Facilities Management Department. This position provides direct supervision of student employees, ensuring the efficient execution of daily maintenance operations in accordance with established standards.
The incumbent collaborates closely with coaching staff to coordinate and schedule field maintenance activities in alignment with athletic events, ensuring optimal field conditions before and after use. This role requires a comprehensive understanding of sports turf management and the proficient application of a broad range of cultural practices necessary to sustain athletic fields and surrounding areas, including irrigation, fertilization, aeration, and related maintenance techniques.
The field maintenance includes but is not limited to: athletic complex grounds, baseball, softball, soccer, tennis courts, track, and cross country course.
Your Key Responsibilities:

• Plan, coordinate, and execute year-round maintenance practices for the Athletic Complex and associated athletic fields to ensure optimal playing conditions
• Planning, maintenance and planting of landscape areas within the athletic complex.
• Communicate effectively and professionally with colleagues, staff, students, summer labor, contractors, vendors, and coaching personnel
• Demonstrate a working knowledge of budget management, including the responsible use and allocation of resources
• Maintain proficiency in integrated pest management practices; regularly monitor field conditions and coordinate with the Grounds Superintendent to address any identified issues
• Perform seasonal grounds related duties on campus such as leaf removal and snow and ice removal as required
• Maintain accurate inventory records of materials, supplies, and related equipment necessary for field maintenance operations
• Conduct routine inspection, maintenance, and care of vehicles and equipment to ensure safe and efficient operation.
• Assist with additional campus grounds duties and responsibilities as needed

What You'll Bring:
Education required to ensure success in this position:

• High School Diploma, or equivalent, required
• Bachelor's or Associate degree in Turfgrass Science/Management, Agronomy, Horticulture, or related field, preferred.

Experience required to ensure success in this position:

• Minimum of two years' related experience, required

Experience working on highly maintained athletic fields or golf courses is strongly preferred.
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. 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 ten federally recognized Work Colleges, all Berea students are expected to work 10-12 hours weekly in various positions across campus. Berea College is also the only institution in Kentucky to receive the 5-Star Rating from Money Magazine, 2025. Washington Monthly has named Berea College the #1 Best College in the nation in its 2025 College Guide. Berea College appears in their rankings as #1 College (overall): Best College for your Tuition (and Tax) Dollars, #1 Best-in Class College, #1 Liberal Arts College and #1 Best Bang for the Buck Southern College.
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
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. If you think you are ready to be a part of an exciting team, then we encourage you to continue with this applicant friendly, online job application!
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 for children of College Staff, ages 6 weeks to 6 years, 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.
To learn more details, visit our benefits page at
Our Unique Culture:
Berea College strives to be a place where people with various Christian interpretations, different religious traditions, and no religious traditions work together in support of
Over the past century, various leaders of the College have applied the College's inclusive scriptural foundation and spirit to their expanding world and welcomed those whose beliefs were consistent with the Christian gospel of impartial love. Therefore, Berea College today affirms its inclusive Christian tradition even as it respects the traditions of Jews, Muslims, Buddhists, and Hindus, as well as other faiths, and those holding no religious beliefs. We strive not to ignore our differences, but rather seek to understand each other honestly and respectfully, and together create a climate where anyone can openly discuss what they believe without fear of sanction. To that end, all persons who are willing to share in the spirit and the work of the Great Commitments as shaped by its preamble are welcome to study, to teach, and to work at Berea
Labor Supervision:
In support of Berea College's great commitments, staff and faculty serve as labor supervisors. Our fourth great commitment, The Dignity of Labor, promotes 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. Student Labor Supervision includes scheduling, assigning, and approving student work, developing students' workplace acumen, and providing tangible work experience. To learn more about the labor program office please see the following link