Lead Peer Specialist

Summary

This Lead Peer Specialist position may only be filled with a Veteran that meets statutory requirements listed in the qualifications section. This position is part of the Veterans Crisis Line (VCL). The VCL is a 24-hour - 7-days-a-week - 365-days-a-year service aimed at connecting callers worldwide to a caring - qualified VA employee. The VCL's mission is to provide 24/7 - world-class suicide prevention and crisis intervention services to Veterans - Service Members - and their family members.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position - applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement - 07/23/2026. 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-10 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-9. 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.

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 in Recovery: must have at least 1 year of recovery from a mental health condition (mental illness and/or substance use disorder)
• Successful recovery is exemplified by one who manages symptoms of illness and pursues a healthy lifestyle
• lives independently
• is employed or volunteers significant time approximating at least a part-time employment schedule
• has meaningful relationships with family members and friends
• and is socially involved in the community through clubs - hobby groups - church - civic organizations or Veteran organizations in which the individual provides a service to others
• IMPORTANT NOTICE: Veteran is defined as a person who served in the active military - naval - air - or space service - and who was discharged or released under conditions other than dishonorable
• Restricted to VETERANS - See IMPORTANT NOTICE
• Open to current - permanent employees of the VA (i.e
• T38 - T38 Hybrid - and VCS employees on excepted appts covered by an interchange agreement)
• Federal employees on a Career/Career-Conditional appt.
• Former competitive civil service employees eligible for reinstatement
• Veterans eligible under VEOA - VRA - and 30% DAV
• Those eligible under the Employment Program for People with Disabilities
• and those eligible for CTAP/ICTAP
• NOTE: You MUST provide copies of your DD-214 and Peer Specialist Certification - with your application package
• ENGLISH LANGUAGE PROFICIENCY: In accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7402(d) - No person shall serve in direct patient care positions unless they are proficient in basic written and spoken English
• You must be proficient in basic written and spoken English in order to meet the requirements of this position
• SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: In addition to the basic requirements - You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-09) 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 Lead Peer Specialist
• Qualifying specialized experience includes post-personal mental health recovery experience as a mentor providing support to others in mental health and/or addiction recovery - a recovery advocate directly involved with consumers of mental health services - or equivalent work involving in-person communication to support others in mental health recovery
• At this level - work will have been performed with considerable independence and you are responsible for making recommendations to the interdisciplinary treatment team that can be relied on for soundness of judgment and maturity of insight on problem cases
• Eligible and qualified applicants referred to the hiring manager on a certificate of eligibles will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Planning and Evaluating Teaches Others Communication Leadership Interpersonal Skills Customer Service 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: The applicant must be able to perform primarily light and sedentary duties with occasionally moderate physical demands - exercise patience - and control emotions - with reasonable accommodation if necessary - without endangering the health and safety of the applicant or others
• 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 Veteran's Affairs approved behavioral management techniques with Veterans who present a danger to self or others
• Veterans demonstrate varying levels of wellness - recovery - and symptoms
• This position must be equipped to be flexible and accept that work areas are often noisy - irregular - unpredictable - and stressful
• Work is performed in a wide range of settings - including the Medical Center - group or family homes - community-based outpatient settings - community organizations - or in transport vehicles (public or government)
• For more information on these qualification standards - please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Duties

• The position leads a team comprised of Peer Specialists and may lead Without Compensation (WOC) peer support employees - within a common supervisory structure - to provide services - integrate processes - and meet goals of peer support service programming at the facility
• As the leader of a team of peer support staff - the position facilitates - coordinates - coaches - and problem solve with the members of the peer support staff team
• The position also acts as the recognized liaison to and from the peer support staff team and the supervisor
• The work of the position enables the peer support provider team as a whole to deliver improved quality - quantity - and timely services to Veterans
• Duties include - but not limited to the following: Ensures that the organization's strategic plan - mission - vision - and values are communicated to the peer support staff they lead and integrated into the team's strategies - goals - objectives - work plans - products - and services
• Articulates and communicates to the peer support staff they lead the assignments - projects - problems to be solved - actionable events - milestones - and/or program issues under review as well as the deadlines and time frames for completion
• Coaches the peer support staff they lead in the selection and application of appropriate problem-solving methods and techniques - provides advice on work methods - practices and procedures - and assists the team and/or individual members in identifying the parameters of viable solutions
• Maintains awareness of the status and progress of peer support staff's work and makes day-to-day adjustments to ensure their work aligns with program goals and processes
• Leads the team in identifying - distributing - and balancing workload and tasks in accordance with established workflow - skill level and/or occupational specialization
• makes adjustments to accomplish the workload in accordance with established priorities to ensure timely accomplishment of assigned team tasks
• and ensures that each team member has an integral role in developing the final team products and services
• Identifies training needs and assists in the development of training for peer specialists and Veterans seeking to become peer specialists
• Serves as a coach - facilitator and/or negotiator in coordinating team initiatives and in consensus building activities among team members
• Maintains working knowledge of treatments and services available for the purpose of appropriate referrals
• Represents the team in dealings with the supervisor for the purpose of obtaining resources (e.g. - computer hardware and software - use of overtime or compensatory time) - and securing needed information or decisions from the supervisor on major work problems and issues that arise
• Participates in the service - training - consultation - and other professional activities of VA health care services and functions as a fully vested member of the multidisciplinary team
• Uses personal recovery experiences to model coping techniques and 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 (e.g. - missed assessment appointments - failure to attend or maintain abstinence - risk to self or others - disruptive behavior) - completes appropriate documentation - and reports concerns to the treatment team in a timely manner
• Uses ongoing individual and group meetings to teach Veterans how to identify and combat negative self-talk and overcome fears by providing a forum that allows Veteran to share their experiences
• As necessary - handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations
• Informs Veterans about VA and community support and resources - including how to effectively utilize them in the recovery and wellness process
• Maintains knowledge of current trends and developments in holistic approaches in wellness and recovery by reading books - journals - and other relevant materials
• Performs other related duties as assigned
• Work Schedule: Monday - Friday: 10am to 6:30pm - or 1:30pm to 10pm
• Work schedule includes day and evening tours of duty
• Tour will be determined after final selection
• Compressed/Flexible: Not Authorized Telework: Not applicable for Remote positions Remote: This is a remote position
• Selectees will work 100% of the time in a non-VA-owned space outside of the local commuting area of a parent station
• The employee's workspace must be suitable for conducting business and as such - remote employees are expected to provide a secure - distraction-free home-based worksite with reliable high speed internet connectivity
• Position Description/PD#: Lead Peer Specialist/PD94545A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized PCS Appraised Value Offer (AVO): Not Authorized This is a bargaining unit position.

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The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the largest integrated health care system in the United States, providing care at 1,321 health care facilities, including 172 VA Medical Centers and 1,138 outpatient sites of care of varying complexity (VHA outpatient clinics) to over 9 million Veterans enrolled in the VA health care program. VHA Medical Centers provide a wide range of services including traditional hospital-based services such as surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology and physical therapy. In addition, most of our medical centers offer additional medical and surgical specialty services including audiology & speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, neurology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, urology, and vision care. Some medical centers also offer advanced services such as organ transplants and plastic surgery.

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