Natural Resource Specialist / Soil Conservationist

Summary This position is located in the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Farm Production and Conservation (FPAC) Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). This position serves as the Soil Conservationist and/or as the Natural Resources Specialist. The incumbent works under the supervision of the Assistant State Conservationist for Programs in providing leadership and guidance in the implementation of Farm Bill programs. Responsibilities Assists the field and area staff to market farm bill programs. Assist with the development and implementation of program outreach efforts targeted at underserved clients. Reviews existing Farm Bill contracts to develop, monitor, and evaluate proper contract execution to include, but not limited to, practice implantation and progress reporting by planned and applied contract dates. Monitors direct charge time by budgeted program hours for all area employees through state or national developed tracking systems. Provides training, guidance, and technical oversight relative to administration of the producer level financial and technical assistance provisions of the Farm Bill. Assists the field and area staff to implement assigned conservation programs. This includes providing training, guidance, and technical oversight on the effective use of the major components of the Integrated Acquisition System (IAS). Requirements Conditions of Employment Qualifications Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. AREA OF CONSIDERATION: Please note that this job opportunity announcement is only open to current Career/Career-Conditional employees of the NRCS. If you do not possess this status, you will not receive consideration. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-7 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-9 level. One year at the GS-9 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-11 level. (Please submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. No Award or General Adjustment SF-50s will be accepted). Basic Requirement: This is an interdisciplinary position and applicants must meet one of the following educational requirements stated below to meet the Basic Requirements under the series in which they apply for this position to be considered. (Must submit transcripts.) Basic Requirement for the 0401 series: Degree: Bachelors or higher degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR Combination of Education and Experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Basic Requirement for the 0457 series: Degree: Bachelors or higher degree in soil conservation or related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering. The study must have included 30 semester hours in a natural resource or agricultural field, including at least 12 semester hours in a combination of soils and crops or plant science. Of the 12 semester hours, a minimum of 3 semester hours must have been in soils and 3 semester hours in crops or plant science. OR Combination of Education and Experience: at least 30 semester hours in one or more of the disciplines as shown in A above, including at least 12 semester hours in a combination of soils and crops or plant science, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Of the 12 semester hours, a minimum of 3 semester hours must have been in soils and 3 semester hours in crops or plant science. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience and/or education for the respective grade level in which you are applying: GS-9: Must have one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in federal service that includes: 1)Interpreting and applying conservation program requirements to track contracts, monitor program funds, and assemble documents; 2) Using computer software such as Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word to compile reports, produce charts and graphs, and/or monitor project status; and 3) Meeting with landowners or producers to educate or answer questions on the financial paperwork needed to comply with conservation program requirements. OR Must have successfully completed a masters or equivalent graduate degree or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of the position, such as soil conservation or related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering, biological sciences, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.) OR Must have the specialized experience as described above, but less than one year; and I have at least one year of graduate education as described above, but less than the required two years. I have computed the percentage of the requirements that I meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the first year (total graduate semester hours minus 18) by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.). (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.) GS-11: Must have one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in federal service that includes: 1) Providing training to staff on the Farm bill or conservation program to review contracts and monitor program funds; 2) Representing the Company or Agency at conferences or on committees relating to the Farm bill or conservation program requirements; AND 3) Providing guidance to staff on the technical aspects of the Farm bill or other conservation assistance programs. OR Must have successfully completed a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform the work of the position, soil conservation or related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering, biological sciences, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.) OR Must have the specialized experience as described above, but less than one year; and I have at least two years of graduate education as described above, but less than the required three years. I have computed the percentage of the requirements that I meet, and the total is at least 100% (To compute the percentage, divide your total months of qualifying experience by 12. Then, divide your semester hours of graduate education beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages. The total percentage must equal at least 100 percent to qualify.). (Note: You must attach a copy of your transcripts.) (Your resume must CLEARLY demonstrate this experience.) IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). Experience refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. The OPM Qualification Standards for this position can be found here. Education You must submit a copy of your college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. Important: If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. Please check out this link for more information Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | International Affairs Office (ed.gov) Additional Information Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) or Reemployment Priority List (RPL): Visit the OPM website for information on how to apply as a CTAP or RPL eligible. To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP candidates must be rated and determined to be well qualified (or above) based on an evaluation of the competencies listed in the How You Will Be Evaluated section. When assessed through a score-based category rating method, CTAP applicants must receive a rating of at least 85 out of a possible 100. If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is neither implied nor guaranteed. This position is eligible for telework within the local commuting area of the position and other flexible work arrangements. Current USDA policy includes telework for an 8 hour work day, 4 days per week; other flexibilities are possible dependent upon availability and/or the position and its associated duties. Employee participation is at the discretion of the supervisor. PLEASE NOTE: In the interest of filling these positions as efficiently as possible, we are requiring the following: If called for an interview, applicants must be available to interview within 3 business days of being contacted. If a tentative job offer is extended, selectee will have 2 business days in which to accept or decline. Recruitment and/or relocation incentives may be authorized; Management may authorize superior qualifications & enhanced annual leave for applicants who are deemed to be highly qualified.