PROFILE
Beyond the full-time crew , much of the labor force comes through college students , with 7 to 12 students working ( during a typical year ).
“ Obviously , if we can get students that are in the turfgrass program at A & M , we love to give them opportunities to expand their skillset , come in and experience things in their fields of study ,” said McKenna .
McKenna and Potts work collaboratively to oversee everything . “ We will figure out what we need to get done , what are the pressing issues , and formulate our plan on a daily basis , then distribute that to our crew ,” he said . “ What ’ s important now ? What do we need to get accomplished today ? What would we like to get accomplished if we have time ? And what are the things that can wait until tomorrow or next week ?”
According to McKenna , that cycle perpetually evolves , and the bulk of the work revolves around coordinating the crew and making sure the daily practice preparations get done for each team .
He added that one of the things he loves about the college atmosphere is that everything is variable , no two days are the same , and it isn ’ t the exact same field and sport day after day after day .
With regard to COVID-19 , and its impact , McKenna said that he is blessed that he and his crew were minimally impacted .
“ We were fortunate that the athletic department was able to maintain all of our staff from the time everything got shut down in March ,” he said . “ We were right in the middle of the college baseball and softball seasons when everything started to get shut down . We did lose our student help . Obviously , with events and activities ceasing on our fields , the wear and tear on them was a lot less , so the maintenance wasn ’ t quite as intensive .”
McKenna added that the silver lining of the past year for him was shifting to 40-hour workweeks .
“ It brought a sense of balance back to my life and allowed me to get back to the roots when I first started ,
24 SportsField Management | February 2021 sportsfieldmanagementonline . com