This position serves as spokesperson for the medical center and is the point of contact for local and national media, Conducts the public affairs program for the medical center with responsibility for developing and providing all public information. Often represents the Medical Center Director, participating at public, civic or social events to improve perception of the medical center as a valued part of the medical professional, government and community.

Duties

Serves as the spokesperson for the medical center. Serves as the point of contact for local and national media. Serves as the liaison for service organizations, congressional staffs, community groups, and professional organizations. Conducts the public affairs program for the medical center with responsibility for developing and providing staff direction involving all public information, internal communications, community relations activities. Represents the Medical Center Director, participating at public, civic or social events to improve perception of the medical center as a valued part of the medical professional, government and community. Assists the Director and staff in conducting special studies involving communications, organizational and operation of medical center functions. Analyzes internal communication needs and develops publications or other information materials for staff, patients, volunteers and others who contribute to the medical center's effectiveness and responsiveness. Work with staff and service chiefs in identifying their information needs and assists them with the development and dissemination of appropriate materials. Responsible for the development, coordination, implementation and maintenance of public information and community relations programs that are designed to promote understanding, confidence, and goodwill between the medical center. Coordinates special projects such as official visits. Analyzes medical center information needs, goals, and resources and tailors specific communication strategies using all media to reach target audiences, internally and externally. Advises and makes recommendations to the Medical Center Director regarding the handling of media and community issues or concerns that have possible implications on the medical center. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday, 7:30am - 4:00pm (subject to change based on the needs of the agency) Telework: VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Position Description/PD#: Public Affairs Specialist/PD098390 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 12/04/2023. 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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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. You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-11 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: working in public affairs office such as graphic design, publishing newsletters, media releases, communications and public speaking experiences. NOTE: This experience must be supported by your resume to be creditable. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and ManagementCommunications and MediaMultimedia TechnologiesTechnical Competence 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 is generally sedentary with walking required during visits and tours of the medical center. Flexibility is required to accommodate events and activities occurring in other than normal duty hours. Mobility is required to terms of staging and assisting staff with equipment and other required materials. 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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

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 John L McClellan Memorial Veterans' Hospital 4300 West Seventh Street Little Rock, AR 72205 US
• Name: Chantelle Thibodeaux
• Phone: 228-438-5251
• Email: [email protected]