Chaplain

Summary

The Kansas City VA Medical Center is recruiting for one (1) Chaplain. The Chaplain will function in Chaplain Service. The incumbent provides religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons that are commensurate with the needs, desires, and voluntary consent of the Veteran, caregiver, or staff.

NOTE: The 2-page Resume requirement does not apply to this position. For more information, refer to Required Documents below.

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Duties

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Major duties include, but not limited to:

• Providing extended and intensive pastoral counseling as an integral part of the treatment program with patients facing complex, ethical, moral, and spiritual issues.
• Ensuring program effectiveness and modification of service pattern, which includes research and leadership of clinical teams.
• Serving as a Chaplain representative and a fully recognized member of an interdisciplinary treatment team (IDT).
• Advising and collaborating with other members of the IDT to provide comprehensive healthcare services to Veterans.
• Working with a full understanding of Chaplains' relationships to the objectives of VHA to successfully integrate the work of the medical facility's staff.
• Maintaining effective rapport with physicians, medical officers, psychologists, nurses, therapists, social workers, or others involved with the IDT.
• Providing leadership, direction, orientation, coaching, in-service training, staff development, and continuing education programs.
• Conducting comprehensive religious services and worship, pastoral ministry, and administration of Chaplain services.
• Leading various complex and sensitive projects, task groups, and assignments to obtain pertinent high-level information needed for Chaplain Service management officials.
• Engaging as a spiritual leader, a compassionate listener, and counselor, especially during times of crisis.
• Providing emotional support and counseling using empathy and strong interpersonal skills to effectively connect with people of all ages.
• Providing thorough spiritual leadership, offers prayers, and provides overall religious services for Veteran patients, patient families, staff, and community.
• Conducting regular rounds of hospital wards where patients are critically ill.
• Building strong interpersonal relationships with patients and ensures all patients are provided opportunities for the free exercise of religion.
• Using thorough knowledge of different faiths to perform various religious rituals, lead prayers, and answer spiritual questions.
• Maintaining records and appropriately documenting chaplaincy care services in the Electronic Health Record Management (EHRM) system/Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS) through either service approved template or Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan (SOAP) note format.
• Providing referrals for continuity of spiritual care.
• Providing appropriate education and training to other healthcare staff and trainees to screen for spiritual and religious needs and the importance of appropriate referrals to chaplains for complex spiritual distress.
• Coordinating with community organizations to ensure the provision of comprehensive spiritual care, including interested community organizations, local clubs, church groups, special agencies, business organizations, and other stakeholders, to sustain the necessary links with the outside community.
• Administering ordinances, rites or sacraments; prepares and delivers sermons; arranges for the atmosphere and symbolism of worship; and conducts funeral services when needed.

Work Schedule : 8:00am - 4:30pm, Monday - Friday

Telework : Not Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 000000

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives : Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• Subject to background/security investigation.
• Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements ( Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).
• Complete all application requirements detailed in the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1 or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider:

• your performance and conduct;
• the needs and interests of the agency;
• whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and
• whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.

Upon completion of your trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

Basic Requirements :

• United States Citizenship : Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• Education. Applicants must possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
  • NOTE: For applicants who do not possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational degree, an approved educational equivalency review from a nationally recognized board certification body for chaplains.
• Foreign Education: To be creditable, theological or related education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a current affiliate agency of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) listed at
• Ecclesiastical Endorsement. In accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 17.655, ecclesiastical endorsement is a condition of employment as a VA chaplain. An individual must possess and maintain a full and active ecclesiastical endorsement to be employed as a VA chaplain. Applicants must have an ecclesiastical endorsement, dated within the past 12 months. Ecclesiastical endorsements must be from the official national endorsing authority of the applicant's/employee's faith group or denomination. Ecclesiastical endorsement is a written official statement, by the official national endorsing body of the faith group or denomination, certifying that the applicant is in good standing with the applicant's faith group or denomination; and stating that the individual is, in the opinion of the endorsing body, qualified to perform the full range of ministry required in the VA pluralistic setting. Loss of endorsement will result in removal from the GS-0060 Chaplain series and may result in termination of employment. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved endorsing organizations that can be found here: National VA Chaplain Service SharePoint
• Board Certification : Applicants must be a Board Certified Chaplain certified by the Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. (BCCI) ® or nationally recognized certification body that utilizes the BCCI_® Common Qualifications_and_Competencies for_professional_Chaplaincy or a certifying organization that has a reciprocity agreement with BCCI ®. Board Certification that requires 4 units of CPE is qualifying.
• English Language Proficiency : Chaplains must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations : In addition to meeting the basic requirements, to qualify for the GS-12, you must possess at least one (1) year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11).

GS-12 Experience: At this level, the candidate must have one year of creditable experience equivalent to the GS-11 level that is directly related to the position to be filled.

AND in addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

• Ability to apply relevant theories and methodologies to their ministry specialty.
• Ability to integrate specialized psychological and sociological theory with an advanced approach to spiritual care.
• Skill to seek out primary research and research literature that informs the ministry specialty and one's spiritual care practice.
• Skill in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of chaplain practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes.
• Ability to mediate conflict, hold various emotions and diffuse moral distress among staff and complex crisis situations.
• Ability to provide specialized consultation, teaching and mentoring to colleagues and students on advanced spiritual care interventions in the service delivery area.
• Ability to apply advanced clinical knowledge to write policies, procedures and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area.

Specialty Certification. Specialty certification is demonstrated advanced practice and/or specialization in chaplaincy beyond the board certification and is required for the GS-12 grade level. Specialty certification from a professional chaplain certifying body that is directly related to the assignment is qualifying for a senior chaplain assignment. Proof of Certification required with application package.

Specialty Certifications Accepted:

Drug & Alcohol Addiction

Grief Recovery Method Specialist

Hospice & Pallative Care

Mental Health

Moral Injury

Post Traumatic Stress Disorder

Suicide Prevention

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit

Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.

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: 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:

Accreditation Information : The Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school must be fully accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. Verification of accreditation may be made obtained from Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) ( or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) ( and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education

Additional information

Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. Selected applicants may qualify for credit toward annual leave accrual, based on prior work experience or military service experience. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed.

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.