The incumbent serves as a conservation Agronomist in Kansas. The conservation agronomist provides technical guidance and assistance for the agronomic phases of all NRCS programs in State/Field offices.

Duties

Provides technical leadership and assistance in agronomic, precision agriculture, and soil health to individual land users or groups of land users. Assesses and evaluates soil and water resource management problems and farming practices on individual or multiple tracts of land in the assigned area. Evaluates effectiveness of agronomic practices, identify technical problems and/or deficiencies, recommend improvements, and motivate landowners to implement and maintain sound conservation management systems. Assists with vegetative and management practices to secure a balanced program of soil and moisture conservation. Provides technical assistance in promoting conservation tillage, crop rotations and nutrient and pest management through tours, conferences, and direct assistance to field office personnel and producers. Assists in conducting on-the-job and formal training in agronomy to internal and external customers, providing information to field offices on agronomic techniques for inventorying, analyzing, and selecting treatment alternatives.

Requirements

• You must be a US Citizen or US National.
• Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service registered or exempt.
• Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check. If selected you will be sent instructions on obtaining fingerprints. Please note we are not able to reimburse any fees incurred for fingerprints.
• Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
• 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 E-Verify at https://www.e-verify.gov/.
• Must possess and maintain a valid state motor vehicle operator's license for the type of vehicle(s) operated to perform the duties of this position.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement, including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Basic Education Requirement: Degree: Degree: agronomy; or related discipline of science that included at least 30 semester hours of course work in the basic plant sciences, including at least 15 semester hours in agronomic subjects, such as those dealing with plant breeding, crop production, and soil and crop management.; OR Combination of Education and Experience: at least 30 semester hours in the basic plant sciences, including a minimum of 15 semester hours in agronomic subjects, as shown in A above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. Evaluation of Education: Course work in such subjects as botany, plant taxonomy, plant physiology, plant breeding or genetics, plant ecology, plant pathology, microbiology, agronomy, or those dealing with basic soil-water-plant relationships of an agronomic or ecologic nature may be used to meet the 30-semester-hour requirement in the basic plant sciences. Agronomy courses include agronomy, field crops, field crop production or management, soil and crop management, plant breeding and development, weed control, and similar courses, including those in soils, biochemistry, plant physiology, etc., provided they dealt with principles, methods, or procedures that are applied directly in agronomic work and in the solving of agronomic problems. In addition to meeting one of the Basic Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-07 grade level, you must possess at least one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-5 level or higher in the Federal service (or private sector equivalent) demonstrating experience and knowledge of agronomy, hydrology, biology, soils, and practical engineering techniques and other natural resource conservation principles, methods and techniques. Examples of specialized experience include: Providing technical guidance and assistance to personnel and producers on natural resources conservation measures, water quality projects, grazing lands management, soil health, crop science and/or soil science; Recommend development and treatment alternatives for water quality plans or recurring natural resources conservation projects. OR Superior academic achievement in a bachelor's degree a curriculum directly related to the work of the position. To qualify for superior academic achievement, you must have ONE of the following: (1) standing in the upper third of your college class or major subdivision at the time you apply; (2) grade point average of B (3.0 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed, either (a) at the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; (3) B+ (3.5 on a 4.0 scale) or its equivalent for all courses completed in a related discipline, either (a) at the time of application or (b) during the last 2 years of your undergraduate curriculum; OR (4) election to membership in one of the national honorary scholastic societies that meets the requirements of the Association of College Honor Society; OR Education Substitution: (1) one year of graduate-level education in soil conservation or related agricultural or natural resource discipline such as agronomy, soil science, forestry, agricultural education, or agricultural engineering. OR Possess a combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-09 grade level, you must possess at least one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level or higher in the Federal service (or private sector equivalent). demonstrating experience and knowledge of agronomy, hydrology, biology, soils, and practical engineering techniques and other natural resource conservation principles, methods and techniques. Examples of specialized experience include: Providing technical guidance and assistance to personnel and producers to carry out natural resource's conservation planning and application for agronomic practices; Solving complex agronomic problems on individual farms or group projects; Assisting with vegetative and management practices; Assists in the development of resource management systems. OR Substitution of Education in Lieu of Specialized Experience: 2 or more years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master's degree or equivalent graduate degree in agronomy or a directly related discipline. OR Possess a combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. Specialized Experience: To qualify for the GS-11 grade level, you must possess at least one year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level or higher in the Federal service (or private sector equivalent) demonstrating experience and knowledge of agronomy, hydrology, biology, soils, and practical engineering techniques and other natural resource conservation principles, methods and techniques; Examples of specialized experience include: Providing input on the analysis of complex agronomic problems; providing technical guidance and assistance on topics such as soil interpretations, plant, crop and soil management; Utilizing agronomy technology transfer tools; Communicating and explaining general issues related to natural resources conservation problems and solutions. OR Substitution of Education in Lieu of Specialized Experience: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. OR Possess a combination of graduate-level education and experience, as described above, may be used to qualify for this position. This combination must have equipped you with the necessary knowledge and/or experience to successfully perform the duties of this position. Combinations of experience and education must total at least 100% as outlined in OPM Qualifications policy. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/#url=0400-ndx 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

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

You must submit a copy of your transcripts to include course number, title, completion and grade. 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. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. If a relevant course is not clearly qualifying (e.g. special topic, seminar, research, thesis, obscure or misleading course title, etc.), please submit an official course syllabi and/or detailed course description from the university/college for that particular course to ensure you are properly evaluated. Please note that qualifications determinations are based solely on the information submitted for each particular vacancy announcement.

Important: 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. Click on this link for more information.

Failure to provide all of the required documents/information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

Contacts

• Address Natural Resources Conservation Service 1400 Independence Ave SW Washington, DC 20250 US
• Name: Taquella Green
• Phone: 919-376-8838
• Email: [email protected]