Kyrsten Pluta
Outside the UNG Facilities building.
“Our goal is to provide a clean, safe and aesthetically pleasing environment for the students and for learning and teaching,” Associate Vice President of the University of North Georgia Facilities Department Todd Bermann says.
That goal rests on the shoulders of 188 employees across the five UNG campuses who handle a wide range of tasks: emergency, general response and preventive. That includes things like repairing ceiling leaks after heavy rains and helping install the new stop-walk signal between the Dahlonega campus and the sports fields.
While walking through the Dahlonega campus one morning, Building Trade Manager Mark Gentry and Building Trade Supervisor Johnny Ledford noticed one of the stone benches was becoming unstable, the old caulk had worn away and the base was starting to separate. It was an easy task, so they grabbed some tools and set to resecuring the bench.
“I like my job. I like coming to work here. We love this campus; the kids are great. We don’t have any problems out here. It’s a good place to work,” Gentry said.
Bermann says, across all five campuses, facilities handles around 20,000 work orders each year. Of those, roughly 5,000 to 6,000 are preventive maintenance orders that help avoid bigger problems by keeping buildings, systems and infrastructure in working order.
Beyond buildings and equipment, Bermann says creating a supportive work culture is just as important as the job itself. “We just want to make sure they are safe, trained, have a good work environment… and feel like they like their work here.”
Bermann says supporting staff improves morale and has a direct impact on how facilities interacts with students. “If we make sure [our team members] feel safe, important and relevant, then they’re going to be ambFacilitiesassadors to the students.”
He says, “These are the people who turn the wrenches and do the work, clean up the messes and keep the grounds maintained… If we take care of them, they will take care of the students.”