Director of Campus Grounds and Landscape

The University of Notre Dame is home to one of the nation’s most iconic and celebrated collegiate campuses, an environment where beauty, tradition, and purpose meet every day. Keeping that campus meaningful, accessible, and safe takes exceptional care, thoughtful planning, and a team committed to both daily excellence and long-term stewardship.

The Director of Campus Grounds and Landscape provides the vision, leadership, and technical expertise to steward Notre Dame’s outdoor built and natural environments. Serving as the University’s Campus Landscape Architect, this leader sets the aesthetic, design, and maintenance standards that shape the campus experience, today and for generations to come.

On any given day, the Director might be designing the landscape for a new building project, walking campus to identify and address safety and appearance issues, collaborating on stormwater and drainage solutions, or guiding a team through seasonal operational priorities. This is a highly visible role with broad impact across the Notre Dame community.

What You’ll Do

• Lead campus grounds and landscape operations by providing strategic and daily direction to a high-performing team; foster a culture of service, accountability, continuous improvement, and a strong safety environment aligned with IOSHA and environmental compliance requirements.
• Serve as the Campus Landscape Architect, leading the design and execution of landscape projects for new construction and renewal work; establish, communicate, and periodically update campus landscape/hardscape standards using sustainable practices and best-in-class design principles.
• Oversee stewardship of campus outdoor assets and site features, including grounds, hardscape, and exterior elements such as signage, roads and sidewalks, brick pavers, walls, fencing/gates (excluding parking lot gates), monuments and plaques, ramps and stairs, railings, bollards, outdoor furniture, and light poles.
• Direct core grounds and seasonal services, including turf and tree care, planting bed maintenance, irrigation, pest control, fertilization, and snow/ice response to ensure safe campus mobility year-round.
• Manage athletic fields and outdoor venues, including natural and artificial turf playing surfaces, and coordinate set-up/tear-down support for select sports and events.
• Plan and manage landscape and equipment assets, maintaining the Campus Tree Inventory and GIS data, equipment inventories, and long-term renewal plans for hardscape and asphalt—including annual trip-hazard identification, repair planning, and pavement replacement strategies.
• Use data and benchmarking to strengthen performance, identifying peer institutions and tracking metrics that measure service outcomes, efficiency, and effectiveness.
• Collaborate across campus to deliver integrated solutions, partnering with Utilities & Maintenance, Building Services, and Planning/Design/Construction to address stormwater drainage, infrastructure needs, and project coordination.
• Lead the long-range vision for the campus landscape by developing and annually updating the Campus Master Landscape Plan, defining area-specific goals and a phased multi-year portfolio of landscape and hardscape improvements.

Apply

If you’re energized by the idea of blending design leadership with hands-on stewardship, team development, and long-term campus planning, we invite you to apply and help shape the next chapter of Notre Dame’s campus landscape.

Required Qualifications

• 5+ years of demonstrated leadership experience guiding teams responsible for complex outdoor operations, asset stewardship, and/or landscape project delivery.
• Strong design sensibility and the ability to translate vision into standards, plans, and executed work.
• Knowledge of grounds, landscape, and hardscape maintenance practices and the ability to manage both daily operations and long-range planning.
• Working knowledge of safety expectations and compliance requirements relevant to outdoor operations, including IOSHA and environmental compliance.
• Proven ability to collaborate across functions and lead through influence in a highly service-oriented environment.
• Ability to regularly tour campus environments and engage directly with field operations and project sites in all seasons.

Preferred Qualifications

• Education and/or professional training in landscape architecture, horticulture, arboriculture, civil/site design, facilities management, or a related field.
• Experience developing design standards, master plans, or long-range renewal programs for campuses, municipalities, parks, or similar environments.
• Familiarity with GIS-based asset inventories (e.g., tree inventories) and data-driven maintenance planning.
• Expertise with stormwater and drainage coordination in partnership with utilities and construction teams.

This position will close on Sunday, March 14th.

Salary is commensurate with experience.

The University of Notre Dame seeks to attract, develop, and retain the highest quality faculty, staff and administration. The University is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national or ethnic origin, sex, disability, veteran status, genetic information, or age in employment. Moreover, Notre Dame prohibits discrimination against veterans or disabled qualified individuals, and complies with 41 CFR 60-741.5(a) and 41 CFR 60-300.5(a). We strongly encourage applications from candidates attracted to a university with a Catholic identity.