As the Director of the Center for Epidemiology and Animal Health (CEAH), you will be responsible for the strategic leadership and operational management of a technical unit whose work products are essential to inform policy. You will also be responsible for active/effective coordination and communication with other Strategy and Policy (S&P) Directors and Veterinary Services (VS) Leaders to ensure technical evaluations, analysis and reporting aligns with VS and goals and programmatic objectives.

Duties

The duties may include, but are not limited to: Supervising subordinates more than 25% of the time including, but not limited to, recruitment, selecting, appraising, rewarding, addressing performance problems, and fostering an inclusive workplace. Uses advanced leadership and management skills to develop strategic and operational plans to support the objectives and priorities of the Program, Agency, and Department. Define organization missions and priorities; and develop and implement solutions to organizational challenges. Uses advanced writing and oral communications skills to convey scientific analysis, technical information, and recommendations to help inform Departmental, Agency, and program policy. Uses epidemiological and economic assessments/analyses of animal and public health diseases to lead organization and work collaboratively with senior leaders and stakeholders. Uses budget formulation and workforce planning to develop and monitor the execution of a yearly budget to support operations, hire a qualified and diverse workforce, and succession planning. Assign and review the work of others to ensure compliance with quality standards and timelines; developing performance plans and managing the performance of direct reports. Builds and maintains high levels of moral; managing and resolving conflict; and advising senior leaders on best courses of action to resolve administrative or programmatic issues.

Requirements

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Individuals who were born male after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
• Successful completion of one year probationary period, unless previously served.
• Subject to one year supervisory/managerial probationary period unless prior service is creditable. New USDA supervisors must successfully complete all components of the required training program before the end of their probationary period.
• Direct Deposit: Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
• Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Valid state driver's license is required at the time of application.
• In accordance with Office of Government Ethics regulations concerning conflict of interest, the incumbent will be required to submit a financial disclosure report within 30 days of their effective date of appointment and annually thereafter.
• Some time may be spent traveling domestically and internationally, via airline, car, train, etc.
• Site visits in foreign countries may be to remote locations with few amenities.
• Vaccinations may be required.
• May visit farms and ranches (domestic and foreign) where animal disease is present and may be required to wear protective clothing and shower in and out of some facilities.
• May require long term assignments for disease investigations will require the incumbent work at a temporary duty station from one-to-four weeks, or more, in extreme cases, e.g., foreign animal disease outbreak.
• This position is subject to mandatory physical deployments in support of an emergency response to an animal disease outbreak for several weeks at a time, as required by the Agency.
• Occasional, infrequent assignments require visits to secured areas, such as import centers, laboratories, etc., where protective gear will be required.
• Domestic and international travel (approximately 25% or less) is required as an essential function of the job.

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. TIME-IN-GRADE: Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. BASIC REQUIREMENT for 0401 Series: Degree: 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 above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. BASIC REQUIREMENT for 0701 Series: must meet the Basic Requirement outlined in the Education section below. FOR THE GS-15 LEVEL: Applicants must have one year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-14 level) that may have been obtained in the private or public (local, county, state, Federal) sectors which demonstrates: Developing strategic and operational plans to support the objectives and priorities of the Program maximizing the use of available resources.- Writing briefing and decision papers to inform senior leaders of program objectives. Using epidemiologic and economic assessments/analyses of animal and public health diseases to plan, develop, and execute vital national or international animal health programs. Using knowledge of budget formulation and workforce planning to develop and monitor the execution of a yearly budget to support operations, hire a qualified and diverse workforce, and succession planning. Developing performance metrics to evaluate direct reports and reward good performance while identifying training needs to help poor performers. Note: There is no education substitution for this grade level. TRANSCRIPTS are required if: This position requires specific coursework or a degree in a specific field to be basically qualified. This education must have been successfully completed and obtained from an accredited school, college, or university 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.

Education

Please see above for 0401 education qualification requirement information.

0701 BASIC REQUIREMENT: Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or equivalent degree, i.e., Veterinary Medical Doctor (VMD), obtained at a school or college of veterinary medicine accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education (AVMA). The AVMA website has a listing of all AVMA-accredited veterinary medical schools. AVMA website: https://www.avma.org

OR Graduates of foreign veterinary medical schools that are not accredited by the AVMA Council on Education must meet one of the following requirements:a) Proof of certification of their final transcript by the Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates (ECFVG);b) Possession of a permanent, full, and unrestricted license to practice veterinary medicine in a State, District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, or a territory of the United States that includes successful completion of the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) or its predecessors, the National Board Examination (NBE) and the Clinical Competency Test (CCT); ORc) Proof that the education obtained in a foreign veterinary medical program is equivalent to that gained in a veterinary medical program that is accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education. An AVMA-accredited veterinary medical school or college must have accepted the final transcript from the foreign veterinary medical school at full value for placement into an advanced degree, postgraduate educational program, or training program (e.g., residency or graduate program).

In addition, graduates of foreign veterinary medical programs must also provide proof of proficiency in the English language by successfully completing one of the nationally and internationally recognized examinations that incorporate assessments of reading, writing, listening, and speaking skills. Examples of examinations that assess mastery of the English language are shown below:a) Test of English as a Foreign Language (TOEFL) - Minimum scores for the TOEFL are 560 for the paper-based version; 220 for the computer-based version; or overall score of 83 for the internet-based version (including 26 or higher in speaking, 26 or higher in listening, and 17 or higher in writing). For the computer-based and paper-based test versions, applicants must also complete the Test of Spoken English (TSE) and the Test of Written English (TWE). Minimum required scores are 55 for the TSE and 5.5 for the TWE.b) Academic tests (listening, writing, and speaking) offered by the International English Language Testing System (IELTS). Applicants must achieve a minimum overall band score of 7.0, with at least 7.0 in speaking, 6.5 in listening, and 6.0 in writing; ORc) Canadian Academic English Language Assessment (CAEL). Applicants must achieve a minimum overall band score of 70, with at least 60 in speaking, 60 in listening, and 50 in writing.

Graduates of foreign veterinary medical programs must submit test results with their application. Results of more than one test or testing session cannot be combined to meet the standard.

Waiver Provision: English language proficiency assessments may be waived for qualified job applicants whose native language is English (i.e., the official or common language of an individuals country of birth is English) who submit a diploma or other official documentation as proof of graduation from a high (secondary) school where the entire curriculum and educational programs were taught in the English language for the entire 3 or 4 years of full-time attendance.

Contacts

• Address Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service USDA APHIS MRPBS 250 Marquette Avenue, Suite 410 Minneapolis, MN 55401 US
• Name: MRP Human Resources
• Phone: 612-336-3227
• Email: [email protected]