Program Assistant

Summary The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is recruiting for a Program Assistant. The Program Assistant will function within the Community Outpatient Service at the Independence - Specialty Care Services. Responsibilities Duties include, but are not limited to: Analyze data and perform statistical calculations and developing reports using medical center programs/databases. Analyze the efficiency of reports and advise and analyze workflow within Outpatient Specialty Care COPS Management office. Collects and analyzes data which identifies the need for programmatic enhancements. Provide program guidance and development of employees within the service to ensure understanding and compliance with programs used to monitor the completion of the workload. Collect, compile and track statistical information in support of program operations of substantial technical complexity. Formulates, presents, executes, and analyzes organizational program measures. Evaluates trends and determines compliance with agency guidelines. Gathers information for assigned programs and reviews formulations and workload analysis submissions. Works in collaboration with COPS Specialty management team to resolve issues when problem areas are recognized. Maintains calendars, prioritizes appointments, and coordinates meetings in support of the service. Assembles necessary materials and provides materials to participants prior to meetings/appointments. Responsible for the administrative creation and maintenance of agendas, meeting minutes, calendars, and updates to SharePoint and/or shared drives. Performs administrative work in support of daily operations within the program. Compiles and analyzes facts, develops plans and performs extensive coordination. Prepares comprehensive reports with findings and recommendations based on varied management and administrative considerations and data analysis. Directs administrative support services to ensure that inquiries, correspondence and actions for the department are addressed appropriately. Reviews and evaluates completed staff actions (memos, reports, studies facts sheets, information papers) for overall quality of the document, consistency, logic, soundness of recommendations and compliance with policy. Provides information concerning available training, arranges for instruction, prepares reports, and helps facilitate courses for COPS Specialty Services while understanding the mission behind each training session/module. Plans and/or accomplishes special projects. Uses standard approaches to perform a variety of duties related to special projects involving administrative and/or support issues. Performs other duties as assigned. Work Schedule: 07:30am-04:00pm or 08:00am-04:30pm, Monday-Friday Compressed/Flexible: Not Available. Telework: Not Authorized. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Program Assistant/PD924370 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized. Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized. Requirements 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. Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Physical Requirements: The work required does not inherently include any physical requirements essential for successful job performance that could not otherwise be performed with accommodation or workplace adjustment. A pre-placement physical examination is not required. 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, 10/05/2026. 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-7 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-5. 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 as described below: Specialized Experience: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-06 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience gained in a Clerical or Administrative Support environment in a medical setting. Providing administrative support, operating a personal computer, and using a computer to process and analyze data. Sorting and processing incoming correspondence. Coordinating with others between various units and offices to accomplish work related projects. Analyzing workflow to determine potential problem areas and making recommendations to correct. Proofreading documents for grammatical errors. Assisting managers in evaluations of operating program characteristics. Analyzing and interpreting routine information. You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Manages and Organizes Information Problem Solving Analytical Reasoning 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 work is mostly sedentary. It will occasionally require carrying of light objects such as files, books and papers; some walking, standing and bending. No special physical demands are required to perform work. There may be a certain amount of mental strain due to time constraints and frequent reviews and reports. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at Education There is no educational substitution at this grade level. 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