The position functions as an interdisciplinary team member, assisting physicians and other professional/non-professional personnel in the Veterans Justice Program. Peer specialists perform a variety of therapeutic and supportive tasks that include assisting Veterans in articulating their goals for recovery and personal wellness, learning and practicing new skills. Position requires active participation and presence in a court setting (Veteran Treatment Court).

Duties

Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Duties include but not limited to: Participates in the service, training, consultation, and other professional activities of VA health care services Completes assignments based on peer support service knowledge, skill and proven sound judgment. Serves as a recovery agent by providing and advocating for effective wellness and holistic, recovery-based services that aid Veterans in daily living. Assists Veterans to articulate personal recovery and wellness goals through the use of individual or group meetings. Utilizes recovery tools to coach Veterans on relevant skills needed for self-management of their health condition(s) and pursuit of their personal wellness. Observes behaviors that might indicate difficulty adapting or responding to treatment Handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations through immediate consultation with the supervisor or most available clinical provider. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 8:00am-4:30pm 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. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Peer Support Specialist/PD99702-S, PD99696-S, PD99697-S, and PD99701-S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 08/01/2024. 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-9 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-08. For a GS-8 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. For a GS-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-06. For a GS-6 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. 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. Preferred Experience: Work with Veterans experiencing homelessness, justice involvement and medical/mental health needs. BASIC REQUIREMENTS FOR PEER SPECIALISTS a. Statutory Requirements. Section 405 of Public Law 110-387, as codified in 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13), established that to be eligible to receive appointment to a Peer Specialist position, a person must: (1) be a veteran who has recovered or is recovering from a mental health condition; and (2) be certified by -(a) a not-for-profit entity engaged in peer specialist training as having met such criteria as the Secretary shall establish for a peer specialist position; or (b) a State as having satisfied relevant State requirements for a peer specialist position. b. Length of Experience as a Consumer of Mental Health Recovery Services. Veterans eligible under 38 U.S.C. 7402(b)(13) must have spent a minimum of 1 year in personal recovery from a mental health condition. Restricted to VETERANS NOTE: You MUST provide copies of your DD-214 and Peer Specialist Certification, with your application package. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS- 6 Specialized Experience: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Specialized experience is progressively responsible, post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. GS-7 Specialized Experience: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Specialized experience is progressively responsible, post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. At this level, the position has the responsibility to identify needs and provide individualized assistance and appropriate service to Veterans on less complicated assignments without prior approval. In more difficult and complex assignments, they make recommendations about resources and appropriate services to the treatment team. GS-8 Specialized Experience: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Specialized experience is progressively responsible, post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. GS-9 Specialized Experience: In addition to the basic requirements, candidates must have at least 1 year of specialized experience equivalent to the next lower grade level. Specialized experience is progressively responsible, post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing counseling to support peers in mental health and/or addiction recovery, a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services, a psychiatric therapy aide, or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery. OR Education: Graduate education or a post-bachelor's degree internship meets the specialized experience required for GS-6/9 only in those instances where it is directly related to the work of the position. GS-6. Six (6) months of graduate education or a 1-year post-bachelor's degree internship meets the requirements for GS-6. GS-7. One full year of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-7. GS-8. One and one/half years of graduate education meets the requirements for GS-8. GS-9. Two full years of graduate education or a master's degree meets the requirements for GS-9. One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement. Part-time graduate education is creditable in accordance with its relationship to a year of full-time study at the school attended. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Physical Requirements: The work is primarily sedentary. Typically, the employee sits to do the work. There may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying of light items (such as books, papers), and accessing transportation. The work may require occasional use of Department of Veterans Affairs approved behavioral management techniques with Veterans who present a danger to self or others. 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

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all your qualifications on education.

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: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Contacts

• Address Tomah VA Medical Center 500 East Veterans Street Tomah, WI 54660 US
• Name: Lamelia Lucas
• Phone: (224) 454-6672
• Email: [email protected]