Social Worker (Supervisory Program Coordinator)

Summary

The Mental Health Social Work Supervisory Program Coordinator is responsible for oversight and supervision of all the staff in the Behavioral Health Social Work Programs, including the Primary Care Mental Health Integration Program, BHIP Social Workers, Licensed Professional Mental Health Counselors, COMPACT ACT Coordinator, Behavioral Health Social Workers in Community Based Outpatient Clinics, Women's Health, SUD/Pain Clinic, and Mental Health Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program.

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Duties

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This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2026. The first cut-off dates for referral of eligible applications will be 5/12/2026. All eligible applicants will be reviewed and referred to the hiring manager no later than 5/19/2026. Eligible applications received after 5/12/2026 will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis.

This position is a key managerial position in the delivery of behavioral health services for Veterans at the Walla Walla VAMC main campus, Yakima CBOC, Tri-Cities CBOC, Lewiston CBOC, and LaGrande CBOC. The incumbent has administrative, professional, and technical duties and responsibilities for the management of the continuum of outpatient specialized services.

The Mental Health Social Work Program Coordinator independently provides clinical psychosocial and case management services at an advanced practice level to eligible Veterans and their family members with complex biological, psychological, social, and environmental needs. The incumbent is required to interact not only with the Veteran but also family, significant others, community agencies and other staff.

FUNCTIONS OF THE POSITION.

• Supervise and manage workload and assignments of assigned direct reports under the BH Service line. The location of service delivery will focus on the needs of each individual Veteran. Service delivery may be provided in the BH, associated CBOC locations or by tele-health.
• Fiscal accountability and responsibility for fund control points, as appropriate.
• Interview Veterans and family members to establish facts about the Veteran's situation, presenting problems and their causes, and the impact of such problems on the Veteran's functioning and health as part of a comprehensive psychosocial assessment. Interpret and explain VA treatment and benefit programs.
• Use advanced clinical training, insight, and experience to interpret data and to identify viable treatment options. Assess high risk, factors, acuity, and need for services.
• Serve Veterans who tend to have frequent and severe crises, lack family or an adequate community support network, are poor at self-monitoring, and frequently fail to comply with instructions and treatment, or have significant deficits in coping skills requiring continued professional biopsychosocial support.
• Perform insightful assessment of serious and complicated cases involving psychiatric illness, catastrophic medical conditions, dementia, and other high risk diagnoses.
• Identify the need to formulate proposals for executive-level management consideration.
• Serve as a mentor to other Social Workers, particularly those at the entry level. Provide clinical supervision to unlicensed Social Workers and Social Work Associates.
• Work collaboratively with community-based organizations, Veterans service groups, and other stakeholders to expand the range of available resources to Veterans.
• Establish strategic partnerships and memorandums of understanding between community-based service providers and the Medical Center as needed and appropriate.
• Provide budget and financial management of the assigned programs through calls, reviews, guidelines, and instructions.
• Coordinate Social Work services with other services offered in treatment programs, ensure such services are complementary and comprehensive.
• Provide case management services to those Veterans at high social or medical risk, serving as the liaison to other treatment programs. Represent the program in contacts with other agencies and the public.
• Conduct staff development training and take responsibility for providing opportunities to help staff update their skills and acquire new knowledge in contemporary treatment modalities.

Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

Work Schedule : Mon - Fri, 8:00am to 4:30pm.

Recruitment/Relocation Incentive: Not Authorized.

Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases.

Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year).

Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.

Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66 .

Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA.

Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement).

Telework : Ad-hoc.

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement # : 000000.

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 dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• A valid state issued driver's license with a clean driving history in accordance with VA Policy to drive a government vehicle.
• Must pass pre-employment physical examination.
• Ability to operate and drive a government vehicle as determined by an Occupational Health driving physical examination.
• 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

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.

BASIC REQUIREMENTS. The basic requirements for employment as a VHA social worker are prescribed by statute in 38 U.S.C. § 7402(b)(9), as amended by section 205 of Public Law 106-419, enacted November 1, 2000. To qualify for appointment as a social worker in VHA, all applicants must meet the following:

• Citizenship. Be a citizen of the United States. (Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S. Code).
• Education. Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work.
  • Verification of the degree can be made by going to to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a Master of Social Work.
• Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to
• English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).

GRADE DETERMINATIONS. In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates.

Social Worker (Program Coordinator), GS-13.

Experience/Education. One year of experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level.

Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills and judgment, demonstrating progressively more professional competency. Candidates may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.

Licensure/Certification. Individuals assigned as social worker program coordinator must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure .

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs:

(a) Skill in coordinating and implementing one or more specialty program(s), across the facility.

(b) Skill in local policy and practice development, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program as prescribed by the program handbook or national directive.

(c) Skill in organizing work, setting priorities, meeting multiple deadlines, and evaluating assigned program area(s).

(d) Ability to collaborate with internal and external partners to further program goals and enhance patient centered care.

(e) Ability to provide the full range of supervisory duties including assignment of work to be performed; performance evaluations; and selection of staff, training, and recommendation of awards, advancements, and when appropriate, disciplinary action.

(f) Ability to oversee the fiscal matters of the functions supervised (including fund controls, contracts, and equipment expenditures), forecast resource and equipment needs, and administer the allocated budget.

(g) Knowledge of organizational structure and impact on program operations.

Preferred Experience: Program Development and minimum 1 year supervisory experience.

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

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-13.

Physical Requirements: Operation of a motor vehicle; must be able to see a computer screen; and hearing (aid may be permitted). You must be able to work alone and closely with others.

Education

IMPORTANT: This position has a positive education or training requirement. An unofficial copy of college transcripts showing completion of the required degree or program is required and must include the name of the school, your name, date conferred or completed, and degree or certificate type.

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

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.