Program Specialist

Summary

This position is located at the Hershel "Woody" Williams VA Medical Center in Education & Learning Resources under the Chief Nurse, Education & Learning Resources and Designated Education Officer. This section manages all academic affiliation agreements with over 40 institutions of learning and is accountable for approximately 500 clinical trainees annually. The Program Specialist is responsible for planning, developing, and directing the administrative activities of the Trainee Program.

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Duties

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Major duties include but are not limited to the following:

Program Administrative Responsibilities 50%

• Provide managerial support to the Chief Nurse, Education & Learning Resources and Designated Education Officer for the planning, analysis and coordination of resident, medical student, and trainee education.
• Use analytical skills, judgment and discretion combined with knowledge of administrative principles, concepts, policies, and objectives to ensure program compliance with VA directives and academic regulatory requirements for all programs supported.
• Serve as the primary liaison with critical persons and groups both inside and outside the organization.
• Manage the data gathering and writing of multiple detailed reports, initiation and maintenance of VA educational activities including agreements, monitoring, and reporting of learner satisfaction and other data management including resident, medical and associated health trainee supervision.
• Develop budget requests for residents and associated health salaries, employee tuition reimbursements, educational membership dues, and other service costs.
• Perform management analyses and develops reports pertaining to program goals, operations, and assessments for planning phases of activities and the program. This includes the acquisition, development, analysis or use in planning efforts. Such assignments are broad and not adequately covered by manuals, previous reports or established management programs and require a great deal of creativity in designing methods to gather, analyze and present data.
• Responsible for identifying issues within the service which may require new or revised policies or procedures and brings them to the supervisor's attention for appropriate action. Responsible for obtaining timely actions, responses or decisions on request and ensures they are consistent with OAA and Huntington VAMC policy. Responsible for final analysis, recommends controversial actions to remedy critical problems alleviating any chance that accreditation may be threatened.
• Maintain program requirements/validation criteria for assigned area.
• Prepare reports involving trend analyses and follow-up in these areas for Quality Assurance Program, analyzes complex and critical data and recommends action. The employee also implements changes where possible, initiates training, and other actions necessary to improve customer relations

Controlled Substance Coordinator 50%

• Distribute written policies and procedures and/or memorandums that promote commitment to corporate compliance and address specific areas of risk associated with non-compliance with controlled substance inspections and accountability in accordance with VHA directives and handbooks
• Maintain collaborative working relationships with VHA Controlled Substance Coordinators, as well as the CVAHCS medical staff, the executive leadership and other key VAMC stakeholders
• Utilize staff interviews, inspection reports, and auditing tools to identify weaknesses within the program
• Maintain awareness of laws and regulations, keeping appraised of current changes that may affect the Medical Center Controlled Substance Program through seminars, training programs, conferences, and personal contacts
• Establish procedures for data validation. This objective is to assure accurate, timely, and consistent submission of inspection reports, quarterly statistical data, and end of the year analysis
• Ensure the development and implementation of regular, effective education and training for all narcotic inspectors on issues relating to the controlled substance inspection compliance program. Establishes a mechanism for documentation and tracking of compliance related training to ensure that data is captured accurately and timely in accordance with VHA Handbook 1108.02, VISN 19, and the Inspector General
• Maintain open lines of communication such as participation in the monthly conference calls or personal contacts are effectively utilized to receive questions and address concerns regarding medical center compliance with current and future performance measures as they relate to compliance with the unannounced narcotic inspection program

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.

Work Schedule: Full-time, Monday-Friday, 7:30am-4:00pm

Telework: Ad-hoc according to Agency policy

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/ PD230830

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Critical Skills Incentive (CSI): Not Approved

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
• To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and questionnaire, this position requires an online assessment. The online assessment measures critical general competencies required to perform the job.
• All applicants tentatively selected for VA employment in a testing designated position are subject to urinalysis to screen for illegal drug use prior to appointment. Applicants who refuse to be tested will be denied employment with VA.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
• Physical Requirements: Typically, the employee sits or stands comfortably to do the work; however, there may be some walking, standing, bending, carrying of items, i.e., papers, video equipment, cables, etc. or pushing carts with equipment.
• 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)

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period 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 probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 09/03/2026.

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-07 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-05. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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.

You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below:

To qualify for this position at the GS-07 level, you must meet one of the following:

• Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-05 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Performs administrative support work that involves a variety of tasks and supports program functions. Creates reports. Receives and processes requests. Tracks action items and data, monitors customer satisfaction. Experience with reimbursements and exposure to budgets

• Education: One (1) full year of successfully completed graduate level education or superior academic achievement, that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation.
  • Superior Academic Achievement (SAA): SAA at the baccalaureate level in the coursework detailed above is fully qualifying. Applicants who wish to apply under this provision must submit proof from their educational institution that they meet one of the criteria listed below. To qualify for SAA, applicants must have completed all the requirements for a bachelor's degree in a curriculum that is qualifying for the position to be filled and meet one of the following:
    
    
    • Rank in the upper one-third of your class in the college, university or major subdivision.
    • A grade-point average of "B" (a GPA of 2.95 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all completed undergraduate courses, or those completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.
    • A grade point average of "B+" (a GPA of 3.45 or higher out of a possible 4.0) for all courses in your major field of study, or those courses in your major completed in the last two years of undergraduate study.
    • Membership in a national honor society (other than freshman honor societies) recognized by the Association of College Honor Societies. For a list of recognized honor societies please visit
  • For more information regarding SAA please visit

OR

• Combination: equivalent combination of successfully completed education and specialized experience directly related to the work of the position as outlined above that meets the requirements of the position. Only education beyond a bachelor's degree may be used to qualify applicants for the GS-07 level. NOTE: If using education combined with specialized experience to qualify, a copy of your transcript is required.

To qualify for this position at the GS-09 level, you must meet one of the following:

• Specialized Experience: You must have at least one (1) full year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade level (GS-7) 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 Program Specialist. Qualifying specialized experience includes: Performs administrative support work that involves a variety of tasks and supports program functions. Creates reports. Receives and processes requests. Tracks action items and data, monitors customer satisfaction. Experience with reimbursements and exposure to budgets

• Education: Successfully completed two (2) years of progressively higher-level graduate education or masters or equivalent graduate degree or LL.B. or J.D., in a related field of the position to be filled. Education at the graduate level must have been obtained in an accredited college or university and must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. NOTE: Transcripts must be submitted with application. Education cannot be credited without documentation.

~OR~

• Combination: equivalent combination of successfully completed education and specialized experience directly related to the work of the position as outlined above that meets the requirements of the position. Only education in excess of the first year (18 semester hours) may be used to qualify applicants for the GS-09 level. NOTE: If using education combined with specialized experience to qualify, a copy of your transcript is required.

For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at

Education

A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of 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: 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:

Additional information

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.

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

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. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. 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.

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

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at

Whole Health is an approach to health care that empowers and equips people to take charge of their health and well-being and live their life to the fullest. The VA is committed to Whole Health and values Veteran and Employee health and wellbeing. As a VA employee, you will practice Whole Health in an environment that supports personalized and proactive care.

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.