Summary

THE POSITION LOCATION WILL BE DETERMINED UPON SELECTION OF THE CANDIDATE

This is a twelve-month training program that may require travel throughout the state of Georgia. Depending upon agency needs, candidates will be expected to relocate within the state when the training program is complete.

This job is open to

The public
U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

Clarification from the agency

Open to all US Citizens and US Nationals.

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Duties

Initial appointment is subject to satisfactory completion of training.
Applicants selected as County Executive Director in Training (CEDTs) must sign an agreement to accept training assignment wherever located within the state.
Each CEDT shall satisfactorily complete a minimum 52-week training program.
CEDT's who do not satisfactorily complete the required training shall be separated without prejudice.
The District Director, State Executive Director, State Committee, State Training Coordinator, State Office Specialist, and previous County Executive Director trainers will evaluate the trainee's performance at the end of the 52-week period.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

You must be a US Citizen or US National.
Males born after 12/31/1959 must be Selective Service Registered or Exempt.
Must be a high school graduate or equivalent.
Must be 18 years of age or 17 years of age for high school graduates.
Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
Direct Deposit - Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check.To learn more about E-Verify, including your rights and responsibilities, visit
Successful completion of one-year probationary period, if required.

Qualifications

Qualifications are in accordance with requirements in Handbook 27-PM.

Applicants must meet all qualification and eligibility requirements by the closing date in the announcement, including the following specialized experience and/or education, as identified below:

You may start at the CO-05 level if you have one of the following qualifications:

Four-year degree in an accredited business, college or university in any field in which high school graduation or the equivalent is a prerequisite: OR
One year of *specialized experience , equivalent to CO-4 or GS-4, applying office methods and procedures to provide clerical and limited technical support to any farm or agricultural program. OR
Combination of education and experience described above. Experience that shows your ability to perform progressively more complex, responsible, or difficult duties: and that shows your ability to learn the specific work of this position.

You may start at the CO-07 level if you have one of the following qualifications:

Four-year degree in an accredited business, college or university in any field in which high school graduation or the equivalent is a prerequisite with a grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 point scale: OR
One year *specialized experience equivalent to grade CO-5 or GS-5 applying office methods and procedures to provide clerical and limited technical support to independently perform a full range of farm program processes. Experience that shows your ability to perform progressively more complex, responsible, or difficult duties: and that shows your ability to learn the specific work of this position. OR
Combination of education and experience described above.

At CO-09, applicants must meet one of the following criteria in order to qualify for this position:

A Masters or equivalent graduate degree or two full academic years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree from an accredited college or university: OR

One year *specialized experience equivalent to grade CO-7 or above or GS-7 or above applying office methods and procedures to provide clerical and limited technical support to independently perform a full range of farm program processes. Experience that shows your ability to perform progressively more complex, responsible, or difficult duties, and that shows your ability to learn the specific work of this position. Experience in providing program interpretation, and instruction for an agriculture program area or operational phases of farm loan programs. Such work experience included acquiring data and providing information to producers, farm loan borrowers and farming operations; writing summary reports; assisting staff with policy guidance; arranging and scheduling activities of subordinates to complete technical/clerical review: OR
One year supervisory experience: OR

A combination of education and experience as listed above.

*Specialized Experience is described as: experience that equipped the applicant with the particular KSA's to perform successfully the duties of the position and is typically in or related to the work of the position being filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least 1 year in the next lower grade level.

Education

College Transcript: If you are qualifying based on education, submit a copy of your college transcript that lists college courses detailing each course by the number and department (i.e., bio 101, math 210, etc.), course title, number of credit hours and grade earned. You must submit with your application package evidence that any education completed in a foreign institution was appropriately accredited by an accredited body recognized by the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. Education standards. You may submit an unofficial copy of the transcript at the initial phase of the application process; however, if selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Please refer to the "How to Apply" section for instructions on submitting the transcript. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.

Additional information

Veterans preference does not apply since this position is being advertised under Title 7 authorities.
Relocation expenses are not authorized.
When promotion potential is shown, the agency is not making a commitment and is not obligated to provide future promotions to you if you are selected. Future promotions will be dependent on your ability to perform the duties at a higher level, the continuing need for an employee assigned to the higher level, and administrative approval.
This is a Title 7, Non-Federal, Non-Civil Service position.
This announcement may be used to fill one or more vacancies.
Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (Braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact: USDAs TARGET Center at 202-720-2600 (voice and TDD).
Optional - This position may be eligible to telework up to four (4) days per biweekly pay period (2 day per week) upon supervisory approval. This position may also be eligible for flexible work schedules in accordance with Department and Agency directives.

Benefits
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.
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.

How You Will Be Evaluated

You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.

All applicants will be considered on the basis of their education, experience, supervisory appraisal, training, awards and education as it relates to the qualification requirements and on the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSA's) listed below.

PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING ELIGIBILITY QUESTIONS CAREFULLY. During the online application process, you will be asked to address the following items:

Describe your ability to plan work and make decisions independently. Be sure to include specific examples.
Describe your ability to identify and resolve problems. Be sure to include specific examples explaining the situation you encountered, the action you took, and the resolution you achieved.
Describe your ability to communicate in writing being sure to include specific examples.
Describe your ability to communicate orally being sure to include the type of audiences you have presented to, material covered, etc.
Describe your ability to supervise and lead people. Be sure to include specific examples including any supervisory or leadership roles you may have held.
Describe your knowledge of or experience in Agricultural practices and customs including details regarding how you obtained this knowledge.
Describe your customer service skills, and provide specific examples regarding various situations where you have utilized these skills.

Note: If, after reviewing your resume and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and or experience, your score may be adjusted to more accurately reflect your abilities, or you may be found ineligible. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating. Providing inaccurate information on application documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.

Benefits
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.
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.
Required Documents
As a new or existing federal employee, you and your family may have access to a range of benefits. Your benefits depend on the type of position you have - whether you're a permanent, part-time, temporary or an intermittent employee. You may be eligible for the following benefits, however, check with your agency to make sure you're eligible under their policies.
The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.
- Resume that includes:
1) Personal information such as name, address, contact information
2) Education
3) Detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; for current or previous Federal or FSA County employees , it should also include the title, Pay Plan, Series and Grade, Step and Salary for each work experience entry
4) Other qualifications
- For current or previous Federal or FSA County employees, you must attach a copy of your most recent Most Recent Notification of Personnel Action SF-50, SF-50B, (Most Recent Most recent non-award Notification of Personnel Action or equivalent showing position title, series, grade and salary. ) or equivalent. Award SF-50 or SF-50B (or equivalent) will result in an ineligible rating.
- Current USDA employees (both permanent and temporary) must submit your most recently completed annual performance appraisal/summary rating (dated within the last 18 months) which identifies the employee's official rating of record and is signed by the supervisor. If a performance appraisal/summary rating is not available, you must submit a statement advising why the performance appraisal/summary rating is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan. Failure to submit either a performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement regarding the reason for not submitting a performance appraisal/summary rating will result in an ineligible rating.
- Former USDA employees (both permanent and temporary) must submit your latest annual performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement advising why the performance appraisal/summary rating is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan. Failure to submit either a performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement regarding the reason for not submitting a performance appraisal will result in an ineligible rating.
If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.
Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact us at candace.fette@usda.gov well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement to be entered into the system prior to its closing.
This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.
To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.
NOTE : Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.
Agency contact information
Ian Brooks
Phone
706-552-2505
Email
ian.brooks@usda.gov
Address
Farm Service Agency - County Offices
Federal Building, 355 E. Hancock Ave., Suite 102
Athens, GA 30601
US
Next steps
Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account at USAJOBS account to check your application status.
You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status).
Fair and Transparent
The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.
- Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
- Reasonable accommodation policy
- Financial suitability
- Selective Service
- New employee probationary period
- Signature and false statements
- Privacy Act
- Social security number request

Required Documents

The following documents are required for your applicant package to be complete. Our office cannot be responsible for incompatible software, illegible fax transmissions, delays in the mail service, your system failure, etc. Encrypted documents will not be accepted. Failure to submit required, legible documents may result in loss of consideration.

Resume that includes:

1) Personal information such as name, address, contact information

2) Education

3) Detailed work experience related to this position as described in the major duties including work schedule, hours worked per week, dates of employment; for current or previous Federal or FSA County employees , it should also include the title, Pay Plan, Series and Grade, Step and Salary for each work experience entry

4) Other qualifications

For current or previous Federal or FSA County employees, you must attach a copy of your most recent Most Recent Notification of Personnel Action SF-50, SF-50B, (Most Recent Most recent non-award Notification of Personnel Action or equivalent showing position title, series, grade and salary. ) or equivalent. Award SF-50 or SF-50B (or equivalent) will result in an ineligible rating.
Current USDA employees (both permanent and temporary) must submit your most recently completed annual performance appraisal/summary rating (dated within the last 18 months) which identifies the employee's official rating of record and is signed by the supervisor. If a performance appraisal/summary rating is not available, you must submit a statement advising why the performance appraisal/summary rating is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan. Failure to submit either a performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement regarding the reason for not submitting a performance appraisal/summary rating will result in an ineligible rating.
Former USDA employees (both permanent and temporary) must submit your latest annual performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement advising why the performance appraisal/summary rating is unavailable. Do not submit a performance plan. Failure to submit either a performance appraisal/summary rating or a statement regarding the reason for not submitting a performance appraisal will result in an ineligible rating.

If education is required or you are using education to qualify, you must submit a copy of your college transcripts. An unofficial copy is sufficient with the application; however, if you are selected, you will be required to submit official transcripts prior to entering on duty. Education must have been successfully obtained from an accredited school, college or university. If any education was completed at a foreign institute, you must submit with your application evidence that the institute was appropriately accredited by an accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education as equivalent to U.S. education standards. There are private organizations that specialize in this evaluation and a fee is normally associated with this service. All transcripts must be in English or include an English translation.

If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:

Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.

How to Apply

Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before you begin. You must complete this application process and submit all required documents electronically by 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time (ET) on the closing date of this announcement.

Applying online is highly encouraged. We are available to assist you during business hours (normally 8:00 a.m. - 4:00 p.m., Monday - Friday). If applying online poses a hardship, contact us at candace.fette@usda.gov well before the closing date for an alternate method. All hardship application packages must be complete and submitted no later than noon ET on the closing date of the announcement to be entered into the system prior to its closing.

This agency provides reasonable accommodation to applicants with disabilities on a case-by-case basis; contact the Agency Contact to request this.

To begin, click "Apply Online" and follow the instructions to complete the Assessment Questionnaire and attach your resume and all required documents.

NOTE : Please verify that documents you are uploading from USAJOBS transfer into the Agency's staffing system as there is a limitation to the number of documents that can be transferred. However, once in the Agency's staffing system, you will have the opportunity to upload additional documents. Uploaded documents must be less than 5MB and in one of the following document formats: GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, PDF, TXT or Word (DOC or DOCX). Do not upload Adobe Portfolio documents because they are not viewable.

Agency contact information

Ian Brooks

Phone

706-552-2505

Email

ian.brooks@usda.gov

Address

Farm Service Agency - County Offices

Federal Building, 355 E. Hancock Ave., Suite 102

Athens, GA 30601

Next steps

Your application will be reviewed to verify that you meet the eligibility and qualification requirements for the position prior to issuing referral lists to the selecting official. If further evaluation or interviews are required, you will be contacted. Log in to your USAJOBS account at USAJOBS account to check your application status.

You must choose to turn on email notifications in your USAJOBS profile if you want to receive important email notifications that may impact your applicant experience (e.g. If you start an application and do not submit it prior to the closing date, USAJOBS will send an email reminder that the closing date is approaching and your application is in an incomplete status).

Fair & Transparent

The Federal hiring process is set up to be fair and transparent. Please read the following guidance.

Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Policy
Reasonable accommodation policy
Financial suitability
Selective Service
New employee probationary period
Signature and false statements
Privacy Act
Social security number request