Associate Director, Facilities

Catlin Gabel School; Portland (OR); On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Catlin Gabel School in Portland, Oregon seeks an experienced Associate Director, Facilities to lead the Campus Technician team and foster a culture of service across Facilities. You will lead hands-on, cross-campus collaboration to ensure a safe, welcoming, and well-functioning campus for daily school activities and major events.

The ideal candidate brings significant facilities leadership, strong judgment, and a proven ability to develop teams, solve problems, and build trust with colleagues,

Qualifications

• Significant hands-on facilities leadership experience.
• Experience building and developing teams in complex service environments.
• Strong knowledge of building systems, safety, and regulatory requirements.
• Excellent judgment, service orientation, and teamwork skills.
• Willingness to spend time across campus and lead by example.

Responsibilities

• Lead, coach, and develop the Campus Technician team to deliver high-quality service.
• Coordinate daily maintenance, custodial, event, and operational needs across campus.
• Lead safety, compliance, and continuous improvement initiatives.
• Partner with the Director on projects, budgets, and vendor relationships.

Skills

People leadership

Service orientation

Operational judgment

Organization & systems thinking

Facilities expertise

Job description

Catlin Gabel is an independent, progressive PreK–12 school in Portland, Oregon. Our mission is to foster compassionate and curious citizens of the world by inspiring in every student a love of learning and the courage to take responsible action.

Our Facilities team helps make that mission possible by creating safe, welcoming, and well-functioning spaces for

learning, working, gathering, and community. We work collaboratively across the School and take pride in being responsive, resourceful, and excellent partners to the students, colleagues, and families we serve.

For this role in particular, we believe great facilities leadership is also people leadership . We want to build a team where people find their work rewarding, take pride in what they accomplish together, continue developing their skills, and know that their work matters to the people who use our campus every day.

Catlin Gabel School is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We celebrate diversity and do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, marital status, disability, or any other protected characteristic under federal, state, or local law. If you have any questions, please reach out to [e-mail].

THE ROLE

Catlin Gabel School is seeking an experienced Associate Director, Facilities to lead and develop our Campus Technician team and help create an exceptional culture of service across Facilities.

This is a role for someone who finds joy in a dynamic school environment in which no two days are quite the same. Students and colleagues are active across campus, and Facilities teamwork makes a visible difference every day. The ideal candidate is an experienced facilities people leader who loves building strong teams, developing others, solving problems, and creating the conditions for people to do their very best work.

Working as the Director of Facilities’ second in charge, the Associate Director provides hands‑on leadership to the Campus Technician team and helps ensure our campus is operationally safe, welcoming, functional, and ready for everything from an ordinary school day to a major community event. We’re looking for someone who brings deep facilities experience, excellent judgment, a strong service orientation, and a leadership style that builds trust, accountability, teamwork in a way that promotes a fun, professional work environment.

WHAT YOU’LL DO

The Associate Director, Facilities reports to the Director of Facilities and is responsible for four primary areas:

• Lead & Develop the Campus Technician Team: Lead, coach, schedule, and develop the Campus Technician team to be a positive team culture that delivers reliable, responsive, and high-quality service and grow as employees. Set clear expectations, provide regular feedback, invest in employees’ growth, and build a positive team culture grounded in respect, trust, accountability, and shared ownership.
• Deliver Excellent Facilities Operations & Service: Coordinate daily maintenance, custodial, event, and operational needs across campus. Build strong relationships with School partners, turn requests into clear work plans, prioritize effectively, and ensure excellent communication and follow-through.
• Strengthen Systems, Safety & Continuous Improvement: Use work-order systems, preventive maintenance, documentation, data, and clear processes to make the team’s work safer, more proactive, and more effective. Help lead emergency preparedness, regulatory compliance, and a strong culture of safety and situational awareness.
• Steward Projects, Vendors & Resources: Partner with the Director on maintenance and capital projects, contractors, budgets, building systems, and other Facilities resources. Bring sound judgment and a stewardship mindset to decisions that support day‑to‑day operations and long‑term needs of the campus.

WHO YOU ARE & KEYS TO SUCCESS

To be successful in this role, you will excel in these areas:

• People Leadership & Culture Building: You genuinely enjoy leading people. You set clear expectations, coach and develop others, address challenges constructively, and know how to create a team environment where people feel valued, accountable, connected, and motivated to do excellent work.
• Service & Relationship Building: You understand that Facilities is a service organization and take pride in helping others succeed. You are approachable, responsive, and professional and build strong relationships with colleagues, students, families, vendors, and visitors.
• Operational Judgment & Problem-Solving: You thrive in an environment where priorities shift and unexpected needs arise. You maintain strong situational awareness, assess risk, make sound decisions, communicate early, and bring practical solutions rather than simply identifying problems.
• Organization, Reliability & Systems Thinking: You can keep people, projects, work orders, and competing priorities moving without losing sight of the details. You use technology, data, documentation, and good processes to create clarity and improve how work gets done.
• Facilities Expertise & Safety Mindset: You bring significant hands‑on knowledge of facilities operations, building systems, maintenance practices, tools, and safety requirements. You are comfortable getting into the details when needed while also leading the people and systems responsible for delivering the work.

We’re looking for someone with significant experience successfully leading and developing facilities or maintenance teams , ideally in a school, campus, or similarly complex service‑oriented environment. You should bring broad knowledge of building systems and facilities operations, experience with workplace safety and regulatory requirements, strong technology skills, and a valid Oregon driver’s license with an approved driving record.

WHAT ELSE YOU SHOULD KNOW

Catlin Gabel operates on a beautiful 67-acre wooded campus in Portland’s West Hills. This is an active, hands‑on leadership role that involves spending time throughout campus and supporting thoughtful team management, planning, and execution.

This is a full‑time, 12‑month position. The schedule will be developed in partnership with the Director of Facilities to provide strong coverage for the needs of a busy school campus. Flexibility is important: the role includes occasional after‑school, evening, and weekend activities as well as emergency and inclement‑weather response. All Facilities team members are considered essential staff.

The work requires regular movement throughout campus, including stairs and hills, and the ability to perform the physical requirements described in the Job Description, including lifting and carrying up to 50 pounds.