Duties

If you possess an interest in American history, interpersonal skill, and reliability you may have what it takes to be a park guide. As a uniformed park guide at Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, you deliver interpretive programs to educate visitors and protect historic resources. You independently present a variety of tours, talks and briefings and respond to visitor questions. Your presentations primarily concern the life of Martin Van Buren antebellum politics, park orientation and visitor safety. You explain the area's historic and natural resources and recreational opportunities. You provide information on current park events, projects, and policies, as well as updates on issues affecting the historical and/or cultural preservation of the area. Park guides work in or near the park visitor center, and inside the historic mansion. This position requires a familiarity with arming and disarming common alarm systems. Also, skill in reconciling daily receipts and accurately completing journal entries is necessary and in determining work priorities in the absence of the supervisor. Other duties include visitor services such as interpretive writing, traffic control, administrative tasks, set-up and staffing of special events.

The duty station for the position is at Martin Van Buren National Historic Site, located in Kinderhook, NY, a Hudson Valley farming community 25 miles south of Albany, NY, 150 miles north of New York City, and 150 miles west of Boston, MA. Martin Van Buren NHS has no housing facilities and housing costs in and around Kinderhook are moderate to high.

The cost of living is slightly above average. The local villages of Kinderhook and Valatie contain all the amenities typical of a small community: shops, libraries, restaurants, and grocery stores. The city of Hudson, NY, just 10 miles south, features shops, restaurants, and a hospital. Albany, NY, the Capital District, also provides all the services and attractions one would expect to find in any large urban area, including hospitals, shopping malls, restaurants, entertainment, sporting events, concerts, and educational institutions. In addition, outdoor recreation and cultural attractions are close by to the east in Berkshire County, MA, and the Catskill State Park to the west.

The weather is typical for the Northeast. Summers may be hot and muggy, and winters are cold and occasionally severe.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
• Complete the initial online assessment and USAHire Assessment, if required.
• Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
• You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
• You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You may be required to work evenings, weekends, holidays, and overtime.
• If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
• The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.
• This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

How You Will Be Evaluated

• 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.

  Review our 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 and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 01/23/2023:

  • Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, with dates specified in month and year format, and, indicate hours worked per week. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.

  • A complete Occupational Questionnaire

  • Other Supporting Documents, if applicable, such as:
    • Veterans Preference Documentation:
      • If you are a Discharged, Non-Disabled Veteran, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 showing character of discharge (Member 4 copy), or other Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions, as listed on the SF15. If you don't have your DD-214, you may request it after discharge from the National Archives.
      • If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
      • If you are a Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, or Mother or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all additional proof required by the SF15, and if applicable, a completed SF15. You may request a copy of your Department of Veterans Affairs letter from www.ebenefits.va.gov or call 1-800-827-1000 to establish proof of disability.
    • If you are requesting a reasonable accommodation to the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, submit documentation to support your request, including the Reasonable Accommodation Request Form found here.

  • College transcripts, if qualifying based on education.

  • Documentation for Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan consideration if you are a displaced Federal employee within the local commuting area. You must include: 1) Proof you are a displaced Federal employee, e.g., RIF Separation Notice, Notice of Proposed Removal, etc; 2) SF-50s (Notifications of Personnel Action) showing career/conditional tenure competitive status, promotion potential and duty location; and 3) your most recent performance appraisal. To exercise selection priority, displaced or surplus Federal employees must be rated well-qualified or above 85 on the rating criteria for this position.

  Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc.
  
  Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices.

  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 the instructions before you begin an application. To apply for this position, you must complete the initial online application, to include submission of the required documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on the closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows:

  • To begin the application process, click the Apply Online button.
    • Click here for USAJobs Help with "How to create an application"
    • To PREVIEW the application questionnaire, select the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11796024

  • Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation.

  • Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59 PM (ET) on the announcement closing date.

  • After submitting an online application, you will be notified whether or not you are required to take additional online assessments through the USA Hire Competency Based Assessment system. This message will be delivered to you via email notification. The email may be routed to your "Spam" or "Junk" folder.

  • If you are asked to take the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be presented with a unique URL to access the USA Hire system. Access to USA Hire is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. Be sure to review all instructions prior to beginning your USA Hire Assessments. Click here for Computer System Requirements (https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index.php?title=USA_Hire_System_Requirements)

  • Note, set aside at least 3 hours to take these assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue at a later time, you can re-use the URL sent to you via email and also found in your USAJOBS account under the "Track my application" link for the corresponding application.

  • To ensure compliance with an applicable preliminary nationwide injunction, which may be supplemented, modified, or vacated, depending on the course of ongoing litigation, the Federal Government will take no action to implement or enforce the COVID-19 vaccination requirement pursuant to Executive Order 14043 on Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees. Therefore, to the extent a Federal job announcement includes the requirement that applicants must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to EO 14043, that requirement does not currently apply.

  
  To update your application, including supporting documentation, at any time during the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account (https://usajobs.gov). There you will find a record of your application, the application status, and an option to Update Application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed.
  
  To verify the status of your application both during and after the announcement open period, log into your USAJOBS account: https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login. All of your applications will appear on the Welcome page. The application record in your USAJOBS account provides an Additional Application Information page that provides information regarding the documentation you submitted and any correspondence we have sent related to this application, including the invitation to take the USA Hire assessment. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/howto/application/status/.

  Agency contact information

  Carla McNear Shade

  Phone

  215-597-1570

  Email

  Carla_McNearShade@nps.gov

  Address

  Martin Van Buren National Historic Site
  1013 Old Post Road
  Kinderhook, NY 12106
  US

  Next steps

  Based on your application and your responses to the application questionnaire, you may be presented with instructions on how to access the USA Hire system to complete the online assessments. The online assessments must be completed within 48 hours following the close of this announcement. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation for the assessment should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended.
  
  Your assessment results will be kept on record for one year and used toward future positions for which you might apply that require the same assessments.
  

• 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

Clarification from the agency

All U.S. Citizens, Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) eligibles in the LOCAL COMMUTING AREA.