Director of Facilities and Physical Plant

Description

Bishop McNamara High School is a private, Catholic co-educational high school in the Holy Cross tradition, offering its students a challenging college preparatory curriculum and a complete range of extra curricular activities. The school is located in Forestville, Maryland, about 10 minutes from Washington, D.C. 

About the Role

The Director of Facilities and Physical Plant is one of the most operationally essential roles at Bishop McNamara High School. This individual bears direct responsibility for the physical stewardship of our entire campus: the integrity of our buildings and mechanical systems, the quality and cleanliness of our learning environments, the safety and functionality of our physical plant, and the performance of a portfolio of contracted service providers who support the daily operation of our school.

This is a senior leadership position, not a supervisory one. The Director holds a seat on our Senior Leadership Team and is expected to contribute at the strategic level, bringing facilities and operational perspectives to institutional planning, capital investment decisions, and long-range campus development. At the same time, this person must be deeply hands-on, walking our campus, knowing our systems, and staying close to the work.

The Director directly supervises three full-time facilities staff members and manages a set of contracted service relationships that includes custodial, painting, seasonal and project cleaning, trash and utility services, and fleet vehicle maintenance. This person collaborates closely with our IT and food service operations, where facilities and physical plant functions intersect.

The ideal candidate is technically skilled, organizationally disciplined, and mission-aligned. They bring genuine expertise in mechanical systems, HVAC, and plumbing; a structured approach to project and budget management; and the leadership maturity to operate with both authority and partnership at the SLT level. Rooted in the Holy Cross tradition, Bishop McNamara calls all employees to be living witnesses of our mission: to educate hearts and minds, build family, show respect, and bring hope. Our campus is the setting for that mission, and the Director ensures it reflects our values every day.

Requirements

Key Responsibilities

Physical Plant and Mechanical Systems

The Director bears primary responsibility for the performance, maintenance, and longevity of all building systems across our campus. This includes:

• Overseeing all HVAC systems, including preventive maintenance schedules, seasonal servicing, emergency repairs, and system upgrades; managing licensed contractors and ensuring systems perform to standard year-round
• Managing plumbing systems across all buildings, including routine maintenance, repair coordination, and proactive identification of issues before they escalate
• Overseeing electrical, roofing, flooring, structural, and general building maintenance, coordinating licensed trades as needed and managing projects through to completion
• Maintaining an up-to-date understanding of the condition and operational status of all mechanical systems across campus, and providing leadership with a clear, current picture of physical plant health
• Managing environmental quality concerns, including humidity control, indoor air quality, mold prevention and remediation, and dehumidification systems
• Coordinating boiler inspections, chiller servicing, filter replacements, and other routine system maintenance on a consistent, scheduled basis

Contracted Services Management

A significant dimension of this role is the management of contracted service providers who perform work on our campus. The Director owns these vendor relationships and is accountable for their performance. Contracted service portfolios include:

• Custodial services: Our daily and periodic cleaning operations are contracted out. The Director sets cleanliness standards, oversees contract compliance, conducts regular inspections across all spaces (classrooms, common areas, athletic facilities, restrooms, offices, theater, and the Mona Center), and holds vendors accountable when performance falls short. The Director also coordinates special cleaning projects, including steam cleaning, carpet cleaning, floor stripping and waxing, and post-event cleaning
• Painting contracts: Managing interior and exterior painting contractors for routine touch-up work, classroom and corridor repaints, and larger surface restoration projects
• Seasonal and project cleaning contracts: Overseeing deep cleaning, post-construction cleaning, summer preparation cleaning, and other periodic contracted cleaning efforts
• Trash and utility contractors: Managing trash removal, recycling, and related utility service contracts; ensuring accurate billing and contract compliance
• Fleet vehicle maintenance: Overseeing maintenance scheduling, fueling, inspection compliance, and vendor relationships for the school's fleet of buses and vehicles
• Other trade vendors as needed: Including pest control, security systems, and additional contracted services that support the physical operation of our campus

Facilities Team Leadership

The Director directly supervises three full-time facilities staff members. Leadership responsibilities include:

• Setting clear work assignments, daily priorities, and schedules for facilities staff, ensuring coverage across campus hours and events
• Providing ongoing coaching, feedback, and performance evaluation, and holding team members to professional and operational standards consistent with our school's mission and culture
• Fostering a team culture that is professional, responsive, and pride-filled in the work of caring for our campus
• Identifying staffing gaps or workload imbalances and working with HR and school leadership to address them

Capital Projects and Campus Improvement Planning

The Director plays a central role in planning and executing capital improvement work and serves as the school's primary operational point of contact for renovation and construction activity. Responsibilities include:

• Serving as the school's primary liaison to contractors, architects, engineers, and construction managers during active capital projects
• Coordinating on-campus logistics during construction, including access scheduling, minimizing disruption to the school day, and keeping leadership informed of timelines and progress
• Maintaining and updating our Multi-Year Campus Improvement Plan, tracking the completion status of projects, flagging emerging needs, and surfacing priorities for leadership review
• Managing procurement for facilities materials and equipment, including obtaining competitive quotes and ensuring appropriate approvals are secured before commitments are made
• Supporting the President and CFO in reviewing contractor proposals, pay applications, change orders, and project budgets

Budget Management

The Director manages the facilities and physical plant operating budget and provides fiscal oversight of all contracted service expenditures. Responsibilities include:

• Developing and managing the annual facilities operating budget in partnership with the CFO, tracking expenditures against plan throughout the year
• Reviewing and approving vendor invoices for accuracy, flagging discrepancies, and coordinating with Finance on payment processing
• Identifying opportunities to reduce cost through competitive bidding, contract renegotiation, or bringing appropriate work in-house
• Providing leadership with regular, clear updates on budget status and significant variances

Work Order and Ticketing System Management

The Director is responsible for the integrity and responsiveness of our campus facilities ticketing system. Responsibilities include:

• Overseeing all incoming work order requests submitted through the school's help desk ticketing system, assigning them to staff or contractors and ensuring timely resolution
• Maintaining accurate records of open, in-progress, and completed tickets, and providing regular status updates to the requesting party
• Using ticketing data to identify recurring issues, prioritize systemic repairs, and inform planning conversations with leadership

Safety, Security, and Compliance

The Director ensures that our campus is safe, code-compliant, and operationally secure. Responsibilities include:

• Coordinating with security systems vendors to maintain camera systems, access control (FOB), and emergency gate operations
• Ensuring that fire safety systems, emergency exits, and all life-safety equipment are inspected, operational, and compliant with applicable codes
• Overseeing proper disposal of waste and scrap materials and ensuring that storage areas are organized, clean, and compliant
• Serving as a resource to school administration on safety and code compliance matters related to the physical plant

Cross-Functional Collaboration

The Director does not directly manage IT or food service operations, but collaborates closely with both functions in areas where facilities and physical plant responsibilities intersect. This includes:

• Partnering with our IT team on infrastructure needs that involve physical plant access, server room climate control, cabling, and physical installation or relocation of technology equipment
• Collaborating with food service on kitchen equipment maintenance, utility management in food service spaces, and facility-related health and safety compliance
• Coordinating with Athletics, Advancement, and the principal's office to ensure facilities readiness for events, competitions, and community-facing school programming

Senior Leadership Team Responsibilities

As a member of our Senior Leadership Team, the Director contributes at the institutional level, not only the operational one. SLT responsibilities include:

• Participating in SLT meetings and contributing a facilities and physical plant perspective to school-wide planning conversations
• Serving as a responsive, collaborative colleague to other SLT members and modeling the professional standards and mission commitment we expect across our leadership team
• Bringing a proactive, clear-eyed view of campus conditions and capital needs to institutional planning and budget conversations
• Supporting the President in communicating facilities-related updates to the Board of Directors and other stakeholders as needed

Qualifications

We are looking for an experienced, technically grounded, and mission-aligned professional who brings the following:

• Minimum 3 years of experience in a facilities director or comparable senior facilities management role, with direct responsibility for mechanical systems, physical plant operations, and contracted service management in a multi-building environment
• Demonstrated expertise in mechanical systems management, including hands-on experience with HVAC systems: preventive maintenance, troubleshooting, contractor coordination, and system performance oversight
• Demonstrated expertise in plumbing systems management, including working knowledge of commercial plumbing, repair coordination, and vendor management
• Proven experience managing and holding contractors accountable across multiple service categories, including custodial, painting, cleaning, HVAC, and trades
• Direct experience managing a facilities operating budget, including budget development, expense tracking, invoice review, and variance reporting
• Demonstrated proficiency with a facilities ticketing or work order management system, with a clear understanding of how to use ticketing data to manage a team and improve responsiveness
• Experience directly supervising staff, including setting schedules, providing performance feedback, and building a productive, accountable team culture
• Strong project management skills, with a track record of seeing capital and maintenance projects through from scoping to completion
• Comfort with Google Workspace and standard communication tools; ability to communicate clearly in writing and to keep leadership and stakeholders informed
• A valid driver's license and the ability to move throughout campus and respond to facilities needs across all school hours
• A genuine commitment to the Catholic, Holy Cross mission of Bishop McNamara High School and an understanding that excellent facilities stewardship is an act of care for our community

Who You Are

Beyond credentials, we are looking for someone who brings the right character to this role. The ideal candidate is:

• Technically credible. You know HVAC, plumbing, and building systems from real experience. People trust your judgment because you have earned it.
• Strategically minded and operationally grounded. You can sit at a leadership table and contribute to institutional planning, and you can also walk a building and know exactly what needs attention.
• Disciplined about follow-through. Projects and work orders do not fall through the cracks on your watch. You manage to completion, not just to assignment.
• Proactive, not reactive. You walk the campus regularly, notice what needs attention, and address it before it escalates. You bring solutions, not just reports of problems.
• A clear, consistent communicator. You keep leadership informed, document what matters, and respond to your team and colleagues in a timely, professional manner.
• A fair and steady leader. Your team knows what is expected, feels supported, and is held accountable. You lead with consistency and respect.
• Mission-minded. You understand that our campus is not just infrastructure. It is the environment in which young people are formed. You take pride in that, and it shows in the quality of your work.

Compensation and Benefits

Bishop McNamara High School offers a competitive compensation package commensurate with experience, with an anticipated salary range of $125,000–$145,000 for the right candidate. This range reflects the seniority, technical expertise, and leadership responsibility the role demands. Benefits include health insurance, paid time off, and membership in a faith-filled, collegial professional community committed to the growth and formation of young people.

Work Environment

This position is fully on-site and requires regular physical presence throughout our campus in Forestville, Maryland. The Director moves between buildings, accesses mechanical and utility spaces, and is available across all school hours. Some evening and weekend availability will be expected, particularly in support of school events, urgent maintenance needs, and capital project activity.

Salary : $125,000 - $145,000