This position is located in the Farm Service Agency, Virgin Island Area Office, located in Christiansted, Virgin Islands. About the position: The incumbent functions as the Agricultural Program Specialist for the assigned service area in the Virgin Islands.

Duties

Assist State Office in analyzing and interpreting current and proposed program policies, procedures and regulations related to assigned programs to determine their applicability to and impact on program administration in the State. Prepares work plans and work schedules for the areas assigned which includes determining order and priorities for completion of work. Establishes and modifies techniques and procedures within the established program policies. Analyzes and evaluates various administrative program activities involving testing, data downloads, reporting, and other related processes and procedures. Conducts or participates in program-related meetings and conferences with individuals or groups representing the general public, Federal and State agencies, special interest groups, educational institutions, etc.

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 instruction 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 https://www.e-verify.gov/.

Qualifications

Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement 08/14/2024 including time-in-grade restrictions, specialized experience and/or education, as defined below. Individual Occupational Requirement 1. Education: Undergraduate Education: Major study -- economics, agricultural economics, marketing, business administration, animal or poultry science/husbandry, agronomy, soil science, or related curricula dealing with the production and distribution of farm products. Graduate Education: Major study -- dairy science, agricultural marketing, domestic agricultural development, farm management, agronomy, or other agricultural specialty areas. -OR- 2. Experience: Experience that demonstrated: Knowledge of the laws and regulations governing agricultural stabilization and conservation programs and of the particular application of national policies and objectives at the State level Understanding of farming practices and customs in the United States, and of the economic needs of farm communities at the State level; Knowledge of current State and Federal agricultural trends; and Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with representatives of public and private organizations, farmers' associations, and others, and to interpret regulations, programs, and policies affecting them. Examples of qualifying experience include Agricultural extension work as a subject-matter specialist, county agent, or assistant or associate county agent. Teacher of vocational agriculture. District director, State program specialist, or county office employee performing duties in the operational phases of farm programs such as production adjustment, price support, and conservation. Experience at the county, district, or State government levels in the operational phases of farm programs of the type carried out through such agencies as the Soil Conservation Service, Farmers Home Administration, or related programs. In addition to meeting one of the Individual Occupational Requirements listed above, applicants must meet the following Minimum Qualifications Requirement in order to be considered: Specialized Experience (GS-11 level: To qualify for the GS-11 level, you must possess at least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-9 level or higher in Federal service, or comparable experience not gained through Federal service. This experience must include: Assisting in the planning of agricultural and conservation programs Directing and/or coordinating agricultural programs on a statewide basis through county committees and county offices Working with representatives of public organizations, farmers' associations, and others, to interpret agricultural regulations, programs, and policies affecting them. -OR- Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M. in a field which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of the position, such as: economics, agricultural economics, marketing, business administration, animal or poultry science/husbandry, agronomy, soil science; dairy science, agricultural marketing, domestic agricultural development, farm management, agronomy, or other agricultural specialty areas.. -OR- Combination of Education and Experience: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. To compute the percentage of the requirements, divide your total months of experience by 12. Then divide the total number of completed graduate semester hours (or equivalent) beyond the second year (total graduate semester hours minus 36) by 18. Add the two percentages. Time in grade: Current federal employees applying for a promotion opportunity must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirement of 52 weeks of service at the GS-9 grade level. For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here: Agricultural Program Specialist Series 1145 (opm.gov) 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 college transcripts or a list of college courses with credit hours, dates completed, and grades received to verify all education requirements (i.e. substitution of education and/or basic education requirement). 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. You must document all requirements on every vacancy; we cannot use previous determinations as a basis for rating. All required information must be received by the closing date of this announcement, and non-submission of all required documents/documentation will result in non-consideration. Unofficial transcripts will be accepted. This information must be received by the closing date of this announcement. Non-submission of these documents will result in non-consideration.

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. Applicants must, therefore, only report attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Applicants can verify accreditation via this link. All education claimed by applicants will be verified accordingly. 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.

Contacts

• Address Farm Service Agency 1400 Independence Ave SW Washington, DC 20250 US
• Name: Jennifer Falkner
• Email: [email protected]