The Mental Health Service Line of the Atlanta VA Healthcare System is seeking a full-time Social Science Program Specialist for the VA Outpatient Clinic at Fort McPherson in Atlanta.

Duties

The Social Science Program Specialist is responsible for developing strategies to locate and identify homeless veterans who may be eligible to receive healthcare and other services from VA. Typical duties include, but are not limited to: Performs outreach activities - locating very hard-to-reach homeless veterans. Refers veterans to, and initiates contact with, a variety of community social services and agencies. Negotiates with VA and other agencies to accept homeless veterans into rehabilitation and support programs. Keeps records of all contact and activities, documenting workload and completing required reports. Conducts thorough initial interviews/assessments with patients and implements an appropriate treatment plan. Provides counseling services on a variety of topics to veterans and (as needed/desired) their families. Serves as a liaison to other VA staff to coordinate a wide array of special programs and initiatives for homeless veterans. Motivates dysfunctional clients to resume more effective control of their own lives, demonstrating acceptance, interest, and encouragement as well as selective use of questioning, explanation, and guidance in working to help the veterans explore the issues facing them. Work Schedule: Monday through Friday, 8:00am to 4:30pm Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Social Science Program Specialist/PD006833 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/23/2023. Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment. BASIC REQUIREMENTS. Degree in behavioral or social science; or related disciplines appropriate to the position. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR Combination of education and experience that demonstrated the applicant has acquired knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR Four years of appropriate experience that demonstrated the applicant has acquired knowledge of one or more of the behavioral or social sciences equivalent to a major in the field. MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS FOR GS-11. In addition to the basic requirement, you may qualify for GS-11 based on your experience and/or education as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade (GS-9) in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: outreach activities to inform homeless individuals about available services/resources; working with clients with a variety of problems including psychiatric, social, and substance use issues; implementing and monitoring treatment plans, to include observing behaviors and patterns and reporting same to higher level professionals on the treatment team; providing counseling services on a variety of topics for clients and their families; maintaining comprehensive case documentation; compiling and analyzing data related to program activities and recommending revisions to procedures to meet client needs.. NOTE: Your description of your work experience(s) in your resume must reflect that you possess qualifying specialized experience in order for you to be referred for consideration. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute directly related education for the required specialized experience (beyond the basic requirements). To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and graduate level education (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) . You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Interpersonal SkillsManages and Organizes InformationOral CommunicationSelf ManagementSelf-Direction 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; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: Work requires physical and emotional strength. The incumbent may be required to physical restrain clients who present a danger to self or others. Onsite work is typically performed in a clinical setting but frequently outreach work is performed away from the office where the environment cannot be controlled. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/.

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. 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. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.

Contacts

• Address Atlanta VA Medical Center 1670 Clairmont Road Decatur, GA 30033 US
• Name: June Borsari
• Phone: 508-944-6804
• Email: [email protected]