This position is located in National Science Foundation. The employee has unlimited signatory authority and is responsible for the negotiation, award, administration, monitoring, and oversight of complex cooperative agreements in various stages of the facilities lifecycle. The employee collaborates as a core member of integrated project teams (IPTs) to develop funding arrangements appropriate for each major facility project under consideration for new, renewal, re-competition, or MREFC funding.

Duties

ISB is responsible for providing comprehensive cooperative agreement award leadership, solicitation, negotiation, award and administration of NSF's complex cooperative agreements for the agency's research facilities, as well as construction and operation of new facilities. Facilities are defined as shared-use infrastructure, instrumentation and equipment that are accessible to a broad community of researchers and/or educators. These facilities are generally intended to serve the science community that is critical to supporting innovation across the nation. The Grants and Agreements Specialist is a senior-level specialist responsible for planning, advising, and managing complex cooperative agreements in support of highly complex major research facilities, mid-scale research infrastructure, and Federally Funded Research & Development Centers, which may be at any stage during a facilities lifecycle including development, design, construction, operations and divestment. The duties of the position include the following:

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify at the GS-14 level you must have one year of specialized experience at or equivalent to the GS-13-level in the Federal Service in pre- award and post-award functions involving highly specialized cooperative agreements. Examples of specialized experience may include: participating in the Federal financial assistance (grants/cooperative agreement) process from inception through closeout; providing technical assistance to a variety of recipients; conducting cost analyses of financial assistance applicants to determine suitability for funding including sufficiency of financial management systems in accordance with Uniform Guidance at 2 CFR 200; monitoring recipients' compliance with award requirements; and reviewing, analyzing, and resolving recipients' audit findings. Experience refers to paid/unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service programs (e.g., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) & other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community, student, social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, & skills & can provide valuable training/experience that translates directly to paid work. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. This vacancy will utilize a multiple hurdle assessment process to determine the qualifications of applicants. The first hurdle will consist of applicants completing an occupational questionnaire related to the major duties and competencies of the position. For the second hurdle, applicants who pass the first hurdle will be contacted to provide a writing sample based on two pre-determined questions. Applicant responses will be reviewed by a Subject Matter Expert (SME) panel for related position competencies against a pre-determined rating schedule. Applicants will have 5 business days to respond to the writing prompts. This process will determine the final rating of the applicant for possible referral to the hiring official for hiring consideration. You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above. Ratings will be assigned based on your responses to the occupational questionnaire which will rate the following competencies: Grants Management Laws, Regulations, and Guidelines Project Management Cost Estimation and Analysis Negotiation Writing For the second hurdle, qualified applicants will be asked to provide written responses to the following prompts within 5 business days of the first notification of moving forward in the hiring process: (Responses to the prompts will be limited to one page or less per prompt.) Describe your experience with laws, regulations, and guidelines related to highly specialized and complex federal agreements. How have you provided strategic guidance and interpretation to stakeholders to enable successful grant execution and minimize legal risks? Describe your experience managing multiple projects simultaneously and prioritizing your time and effort among competing projects. How did your planning, organization, and coordination ensure you met deadlines with quality products? Review your resume and responses carefully. Responses that are not fully supported by the information in your application package may result in adjustments to your score. A Human Resources Representative will validate the qualifications of those candidates eligible to be referred to the selecting official. Applicants eligible for selection preference under the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) must meet the agency definition of "well qualified." At NSF, this means a score of 90.0 or higher. In the merit promotion selection process, formal performance appraisals may be considered if voluntarily submitted by the applicant.

Education

Education may enhance skills required for this position; however, no substitution of education for specialized experience may be made at this level.

Contacts

• Address NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION, DIVISION OF ACQUISITION AND COOPERATIVE SUPPORT 2415 Eisenhower Ave Alexandria, VA 22314 US
• Name: Staffing and Classification Branch
• Email: [email protected]