The ability to work closely with many different individuals and departments, supervise student workers, and develop off-campus contacts are just some of the requirements to be the Environmental Sustainability Coordinator.
Jonathan Thielen was the perfect candidate to fill this position.
Thielen, who graduated from Guilford in Dec. 1999, worked as a full-time groundskeeper in the Landscaping department before being chosen for the job at the beginning of this semester.
David Petree, director of lanscaping and grounds and Thielen’s supervisor, has worked with Thielen since 1999.
Petree knew he would be an outstanding candidate for this position.
“Jonathan began to play a vital role with me in this department for recycling,” Petree said.
Two Guilford students, Kristina Millhiser and Laura Wigand, are both close to Thielen and excited and happy for him.
“Jonathan is perfect for this job; he has really good institutional knowledge of the school,” Millhiser said. Wigand added that Thielen “is very much involved, dedicated, and wonderful to work with.”
Because he’s somewhat young, critics might say that it was just luck that Thielen got this position.
But sitting down with Thielen, one realizes that he is a person one would have no choice but to respect. Thielen is the sort of person who would do anything for the students and staff if they needed something to be done.
He has great knowledge of environmental sustainability, and he loves what he does, even though it’s only part time.
He makes a commitment to helping to change the school and make it a better place for the students and staff.
He works 15 hours per week as the environmental coordinator, and 15 hours per week as the groundskeeper.
Thielen is excited about his new position because of the opportunity it offers him to work in an area he cares about personally.
He hopes that in the future the job of Environmental Sustainability Coordinator will become a full-time position.