This position serves as a Public Affairs (PA) Specialist at Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs) within the Veterans Health Administration (VHA). The PA Specialist reports to the VISN PA Officer and, is the official responsible for promoting and coaching outreach in the VA Medical Centers (VAMC), sharing best practices, planning, and conducting comprehensive outreach programs, developing outreach plans, generating events, etc. in partnership with internal and external stakeholders.

Duties

Duties include, but may not be limited to the following: Providing toxic exposure outreach and other support for the Public Affairs program at a VISN or VA Medical Center while displaying tact, common sense, diplomacy, initiative, and solid professional judgment. Increasing internal and external awareness of VA programs, services, special events and projects, technologies, personnel, and research accomplishments. Establishing and maintaining proactive contacts with media outlets, legislative offices, veteran service organizations, health care affiliates and community partners. Advising senior level management on development of outreach campaigns, communication plans and strategies. Planning, developing, and producing a variety of materials and publications. Serving as agency spokesperson in the absence of the Public Affairs Officer. Executing special events, coordinating high profile visits, and supporting outreach to veterans not enrolled in the VA health care system. Analyzing internal communication needs and develops publications or other information materials for staff, patients, volunteers, and others who contribute to VA effectiveness and responsiveness. Serving as a VISN point of contact for the media and public information inquiries and as the liaison with other medical centers, central office, and veteran organizations in the areas of public information and community relations. Developing and utilizing a variety of methods and techniques in achieving communication goals, such as news releases, radio and television scripts, personal appearances, brochures, pamphlets, etc. Regularly prepares news releases and photos for submission to regional and local publications and electronic media. Performs other related duties as assigned. Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8:00am - 4:30pm Telework: Available. 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 AD-HOC telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Public Affairs Specialist/PD99476S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Requirements

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement Permanent Employee Status: If you are unsure if you have permanent employee status to be considered for this position, you can verify your status by referring to Box 24 on your most recent SF-50. The box must have a 1 or 2 in order to be considered for this position. 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-12 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-11. 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. In addition to meeting the time-in-grade requirement, applicants must meet the following specialized experience: You may qualify based on your experience as described below: Specialized Experience: You must have at least one year of experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-11) in the Federal Service, that is directly related to the work of the position and has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to successfully perform the duties as a public affairs specialist. Qualifying specialized experience includes experience where you were responsible for applying advanced communication and analytical practices, methods and techniques to the solution of complex public affairs problems; planning, developing, and producing a variety of materials and publications (including print, visual, Web-based, multimedia, and video materials) to achieve understanding of various points of view or concepts; advising leadership on the development of communication plans and strategies; establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with local media representatives and community groups; and coordinating and implementing special events, ceremonies, outreach campaigns, tours, and other activities to generate public awareness of organization's mission. Preferred Experience: Strong background in community engagement, event planning, relationship building, excellent communication skills, experience with social media platforms. Experience where you were responsible for applying advanced communication and analytical practices, methods, and techniques to the solution of complex public affairs problems; planning, developing, and producing a variety of materials and publications (including print, visual, Web-based, multimedia, and video materials) to achieve understanding of various points of view or concepts; advising leadership on the development of communication plans and strategies; establishing and maintaining effective working relationships with local media representatives and community groups; and coordinating and implementing special events, ceremonies, outreach campaigns, tours, and other activities to generate public awareness of organization's mission. Basis for Selection: Selections for positions will be based on the objective evaluation of the candidates' total qualifications for the position. "Qualifications" means the combination of experience, training, education, skills, knowledges, abilities, personal characteristics, and merit factors deemed to be pertinent to successful performance. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Administration and ManagementCommunications and MediaMultimedia TechnologiesOrganizational Performance Analysis 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; religions; spiritual; community; student; social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge, and skills and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: Work is generally sedentary with walking required during visits and tours of Medical Centers. Flexibility is required to accommodate events and activities occurring in other than normal duty hours. Mobility s required in terms of staging and assisting staff with equipment and other required materials. Work is performed in an administrative office setting, which is adequately lighted, heated, ventilated and climate controlled. However, work does occasionally require incumbent to be outdoors, as for special events or as escort for media crews. Coordination and participation in meetings and other community relations activities requires presence in a variety of inhouse and off-station areas and facilities. The incumbent' has access to office automation and computer equipment. 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

There is no educational substitution at this grade level.

Contacts

• Address Lexington VA Health Care System 2250 Leestown Road Lexington, KY 40511 US
• Name: Michael Helton
• Phone: 615-582-2884
• Email: [email protected]