This position is located in the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), in the Office of Office of Health Security (OHS), Health, Food, and Agriculture Resilience Directorate. OHS is principal medical, workforce health and safety, and public health authority for DHS. This position is Interdisciplinary in nature and may be filled with either a General Natural Resources Management and Biological Sciences, SL-0401-00 or a General Medical and Healthcare, SL-0601-00.

Duties

The Senior Health Security and Biodefense Advisor will serve as a senior technical leader that provides strategic direction, policy oversight and coordination in the areas of health security; medical countermeasures; preparedness and response; contagious and infectious disease management; public health emergency management; global health security; and the medical and health aspects of biodetection, biodefense, biosecurity, bioassurity, and select agents. Specific responsibilities include: Serves as an in-house, nationally, and internationally recognized authority and leader in health security and biodefense, supporting the Department's health security, preparedness, and health response missions (including those that DHS may be leading and supporting as part of federal response frameworks). Provide advice and policy leadership guidance to aid in shaping health security programmatic goals and advances programs and understanding the planned activities of numerous public health practitioners/scientists across the interagency and levels of government, foreign-allied governments, academic healthcare systems and institutions, and private industry. Serves as a senior level liaison to state, local, tribal, territorial (SLTT), national, and international agencies and public/private healthcare organizations to provide senior level advice, consulting, analysis, predictions, reports, and connectivity that add value to the DHS health security mission. Serves on panels, committees, and technical groups at national or international levels; gives technical presentations and briefings; writes authoritative papers and technical reviews; and prepares Congressional testimony for use by OHS senior leadership. Organizes and chairs intradepartmental, interagency, and professional meetings to drive program and policy direction. Participates with scientists and clinical/public health experts in other Government agencies, foreign allied government/defense research establishments, academic institutions, and private industry to understand the health and medical aspects of Chemical, Biological, Radiological and Nuclear Defense (CBRN) threats and the development and existence of medical countermeasures and non-pharmaceutical interventions. Participates in and leads strategic planning and partnerships across DHS component organizations and the interagency for health security and biodefense, food and agricultural security/resilience, and medical preparedness and response. Represents and supports the Department in its interagency health security activities, such as the Public Health Emergency Medical Countermeasures Enterprise (PHEMCE), the National Disaster Medical System (NDMS), the National Biodefense Science Board (NBSB), Emergency Support Function (ESF) #8 and the Flu Risk Management Meeting (FRMM).

Requirements

• You must be a US citizen to apply for this position.
• Selective Service: If you are a male applicant born after December 31, 1959, you must certify that you have registered with the Selective Service System, or are exempt from having to do so under the Selective Service Law. See http://www.sss.gov/
• You must successfully pass a background investigation. This may include a credit check, a review of financial issues, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.
• You must be able to obtain and maintain a Top Secret Sensitive Compartmented Information (TS/SCI) security clearance.
• You must submit to a drug test and receive a negative test result prior to appointment to this position.
• Selectee may be required to serve a one-year probationary period.
• Selectee may be required to serve a one-year supervisory probationary period.
• Selectee will be required to complete an OGE 278, Executive Personnel Financial Disclosure form.

Qualifications

This is a Senior Level (SL) position and applicants must demonstrate that they meet the Basic Requirements AND Mandatory Technical Qualifications below, as appropriate for the series to which they are applying. BASIC REQUIREMENTS: Basic Requirement (0401 Series): You must meet one of the items listed below (A or B): A. Possess a degree in biological sciences, agriculture, natural resource management, chemistry, or related disciplines appropriate to the position. OR B. Combination of education and experience: Courses equivalent to a major, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Basic Requirement (0601 series). You must possess a bachelor's or graduate/higher level degree: major study in an academic field related to the medical field, health sciences or allied sciences appropriate to the work of the position. This degree must be from an educational program from an accrediting body recognized by the US Department of Education at the time the degree was obtained. You must submit a copy of your college transcript OR a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify education. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. Official transcripts will be required if you are selected for the position. Additional Qualifications: You must possess all of the mandatory Technical Qualifications (TQs). These qualifications would typically be acquired through education, experience, and training which reflect progressive development and achievement in leading teams and/or projects for a comprehensive business program in a complex organization. Typically, experience of this nature is gained at or above the GS-15 grade level in the Federal service, or its equivalent with state or local government, the private sector or nongovernmental organizations. An individual's total experience and education must demonstrate the ability to perform the duties of the position. All applicants must show evidence of the following TQs below in order to meet basic qualifications for this position. Please label and include your name on each page. Please give examples and explain how often you used your skills, the complexity of the knowledge possessed, the level of people you interacted with, the sensitivity of the issues you handled managing a large public or private sector organization that administers complex, rules-based benefits or services, etc. It is recommended that you draft your TQ(s) in a word document and then upload into the system. You must address each TQ separately, and you should not exceed 2 pages per TQ. You are required to respond to all TQs. If you fail to do so, you will be rated as 'ineligible.' Technical Qualifications (TQs) (Mandatory): TQ 1: Demonstrated experience serving as an advisor to internal and external partners, public health officials, and stakeholders in the management, coordination, and oversight of scientific initiatives, policies, performance goals, and evaluation of an organization. TQ 2: Demonstrated knowledge of biological scientific concepts, principles, methodology, and practices and familiarity with other professional disciplines (e.g., health science) applicable to current and future specialized projects; use findings of specialized studies, new analytical developments, and modified processes to resolve novel, obscure, or highly controversial problems that affect the program area; leads or oversees large and complex projects. TQ 3: Demonstrated experience collaborating with internal and external researchers and stakeholders to solve complex problems. You must submit THREE written TQ narrative statements that clearly and concisely document specialized experience. Note: Responses to TQs must not exceed 2 pages per TQ, for a total of 6 pages. Do not enter "Refer to Resume" to explain your answer. Applications directing the reader to search within the application or to "See Resume" are considered incomplete and WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. Failure to submit a narrative statement or address any of the TQs is also considered incomplete and WILL NOT BE CONSIDERED. As a result, you will be rated as "INCOMPLETE." Current or Former Political Appointees: The Office of Personnel Management (OPM) must authorize any employment offers made to current or former (within the last 5 years) political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Noncareer SES employees in the Executive Branch. If you are currently, or have been within the last 5 years, a political Schedule A, Schedule C, or Noncareer SES employee, please indicate this in your resume. Serving in a Schedule A, Schedule C, or Noncareer SES appointment WILL NOT eliminate you from consideration. Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) Eligibles: If you have never worked for the federal government, you are not ICTAP eligible. View information about ICTAP eligibility on OPM's Career Transition Resources website. To be considered eligible under ICTAP, you must be placed in the well-qualified category for this position, as described above. In addition, you must submit the supporting documents listed under the required documents section of this announcement. Veterans, Peace Corps / VISTA volunteers, and people with disabilities possess a wealth of unique talents, experiences, and competencies that can be invaluable to the DHS mission. If you are a member of one of these groups, you may not have to compete with the public for federal jobs. To determine your eligibility for non-competitive appointment and to understand the required documentation, click on the links above and contact the Servicing Human Resources Office listed at the bottom of this announcement.

Education

This position has mandatory education requirements. You must meet the education requirement for at least one of the series listed. You must certify that you have qualifying education by including an unofficial transcript or a list of course work, including semester hours earned and grade received. Education will be verified upon appointment. If you are a current Federal employee in one of these occupational series, you may include a copy of a personnel action in lieu of a transcript.

• Please review the OPM page on specifics about required curriculum and for more information on qualifications, please visit: OPM Qualification Standards for the GS-0401 series.
• Please review the OPM page on specifics about required curriculum and for more information on qualifications, please visit:OPM Qualification Standards for the GS-0601 series.

You must submit a copy of your college transcript OR a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify education. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. Official transcripts will be required if you are selected for the position.

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; applicant's resumes and supporting documentation should only reflect education received from schools accredited by such institutions. Applicants can verify accreditation at the following Website: http://www.ed.gov/admins/finaid/accred/index.html.

If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency (a U.S. private organization's interpretation that such education has been deemed at least equivalent to conventional U.S. education programs) with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For more information regarding evaluation of foreign education for federal employment, please visit the U.S. Department of Education webpage.

Contacts

• Address Department of Homeland Security Headquarters OCHCO/HRMS/MS #0170 6595 Springfield Center Drive Springfield, VA 20598-0170 US
• Name: Sylvia Jackson
• Phone: 202-536-6373
• Email: [email protected]