Clarification from the agency

Applications will be accepted from any U.S. Citizen.

The incumbent serves as the U.S. Botanic Garden’s primary expert on urban agriculture and is a liaison to internal offices and external organizations in the community. The position will require working weekends, holidays and extended hours on a recurring basis as directed. Some travel will be required.

This position may be filled at the GS-7, GS-9 or GS-11 level. If starting at the lower levels, developmental assignments will be given with the goal of attaining the full performance level.  Duties quoted below are at the GS-11 level.

Major Duties Include:

Partnerships

Identifies, develops, manages and oversees new urban agriculture partnerships between the AOC/USBG and public gardens and other institutions nationwide aimed at providing educational and job training experiences in urban agriculture, horticulture, food production and preparation, nutrition, composting and related areas in urban communities.

Educational Programs

Develops, writes, offers and evaluates new educational programs that fulfill the mission of the USBG, focusing on agriculture production and sustainable food systems. Develops and offers formal and informal educational programs and hands-on activities for classroom, greenhouses and outdoor gardens, through a range of formats, including workshops, classes, discovery carts, festivals, and for diverse audiences of differing ages, backgrounds and educational levels.

Community Engagement

Identifies and builds relationships with a diversity of relevant stakeholders in agriculture and food systems locally. Engages with other public gardens, institutions and organizations nationwide and in and around Washington, D.C., that have or are developing urban agriculture and community engagement programs or are working in the fields of urban agriculture, gardening and/or food systems. Works to diversify USBG’s program audience through community engagement.

Plant Cultivation

Works with the horticulture team to cultivate and interpret plants of agricultural, economic and culinary importance. Assists with design and installation of agricultural and horticultural demonstrations in an urban setting and provides for their maintenance and upkeep through activities like planting, weeding, watering, fertilizing and related tasks. Performs complex plant cultivation tasks and may utilize a variety of equipment including but not limited to hand and power-operated garden tools.

Participates in displays of plants, exhibits and educational programs for the public and advocates a commitment to fostering sustainability and plant conservation.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen
• You must be able to pass a drug test
• Your resume and question responses must demonstrate the job-related KSAs
• You must meet the education requirement

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Qualifications

You must meet the United States Office of Personnel Management's (OPM) qualification requirements (including specialized experience and/or educational requirements) for the advertised position. You must meet all eligibility and qualifications requirements by the closing date of the job announcement. Additional information on the qualification requirements is outlined in the OPM Qualifications Standards Handbook of General Schedule Positions. It is available for your review on the OPM web site at http://www.opm.gov/qualifications.

Specialized experience: is experience that has equipped you with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the position to be filled. To be creditable, specialized experience must have been equivalent to at least the next lower grade level.

For GS-7

Qualifying on Experience:

For the GS-7 level includes one year of specialized experience at least equivalent to the GS-5. Specialized experience is defined as experience: (1) Propagating and cultivating a wide variety of plants with a particular emphasis on vegetable and fruit production; (2) Assisting with formal and informal educational programs and hands-on activities for classroom, greenhouses and outdoor gardens, through a range of formats; and (3) Assisting with the development of partnerships, conducting outreach and promoting engagement and participation in urban agriculture; (4) Assisting with engaging community organizations in sustainable agriculture practices and other related activities; and (5) Providing support to the management of programs and partnerships, including jointly developing work plans, monitoring expenditures and tracking deliverables and outcomes.

Qualifying on Education:

You may substitute education for experience for this position. Your education must consist of at least one full year of graduate education or superior academic achievement (SAA) on a 4-year degree. Must be related to the duties of the position.

You qualify for the GS-7 level if you meet one of the following SAA criteria in a qualifying field of study.

1. Class Standing – You were in the upper third of the graduating class in your college, university, or major subdivision (e.g., College of Liberal Arts or the School of Business Administration) based on completed courses.

2. Grade-Point Average (G.P.A.) –

1.     You have a grade-point average of 3.0 or higher out of a possible 4.0 as recorded on your official transcript, or as computed based either on 4 years of education or on the courses you completed during the last 2 years of your curriculum.
2.     You have a grade-point average of 3.5 or higher (out of a possible 4.0) in the required courses you completed in your major field or the required courses you completed in your major field during the last 2 years of your curriculum.

Note: You should round your grade-point average to one decimal place. For example, 2.95 would be rounded to 3.0 and 2.94 would round to 2.9.

3. Election to Membership in a National Scholastic Honor Society 

For GS-9

Qualifying on Experience:

For the GS-9 level includes one year of specialized experience at least equivalent to the GS-7. Specialized experience is defined as experience: (1) Propagating and cultivating a wide variety of plants with a particular emphasis on vegetable and fruit production; (2) Developing and offering formal and informal educational programs and hands-on activities for classroom, greenhouses and outdoor gardens, through a range of formats; (3) Developing partnerships, conducting outreach and promoting engagement and participation in urban agriculture; (4) Engaging community organizations in sustainable agriculture practices and other related activities; and (5) Providing management of programs and partnerships, including jointly developing work plans, monitoring expenditures and tracking deliverables and outcomes.

Qualifying on Education:

You may substitute education for experience for this position. Your education must consist of two years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a master’s degree or equivalent graduate degree.  Must be related to the duties of the position.

For GS-11

Qualifying on Experience:

For the GS-11 level includes one year of specialized experience at least equivalent to the GS-9. Specialized experience is defined as experience: (1) Propagating and cultivating a wide variety of plants with a particular emphasis on vegetable and fruit production; (2) Independently developing and offering formal and informal educational programs and hands-on activities for classroom, greenhouses and outdoor gardens, through a range of formats; (3) Identifying, evaluating and developing partnerships, conducting outreach and promoting engagement and participation in urban agriculture; (4) Developing strategies to engage community organizations in sustainable agriculture practices and other activities that address poor diet, nutritional illiteracy and food insecurity; and (5) Providing management and oversight of programs and partnerships, including jointly developing work plans, monitoring expenditures and tracking deliverables and outcomes.

Qualifying on Education:

You may substitute education for experience for this position. Your education must consist of a three full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or equivalent doctoral degree.  Must be related to the duties of the position.

How you will be evaluated

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

Review your resume and responses carefully. Your eligibility for consideration and qualifications for the position will be determined based upon a review of your detailed resume and your responses to job specific self-assessment questions. 

Your resume will be evaluated based on evidence of your ability to demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) for this position, possession of any specialized experience, and how well your background and experience relates to the self-assessment questions in the job announcement. The self-assessment questions relate to the following knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies:

• Ability to propagate and successfully cultivate a wide variety of plants with a particular emphasis on vegetable and fruit production.
• Ability in designing, developing and implementing educational programs for diverse audiences.
• Knowledge of agriculture and food production in urban settings.
• Skill in working with diverse populations, such as children, youth, adults, underserved communities, veterans and individuals with disabilities and demonstrate customer service ability.
• Knowledge of safe practices for farming, food handling and storage.
• Ability to engage community organizations in sustainable agriculture practices and other activities that address poor diet, nutritional illiteracy and food insecurity.
• Ability to exhibit a positive and professional attitude and approach toward the work, co-workers, stakeholders, supervisors and the public.

Your responses to the self-assessment questions serve as the basis for your initial rating. You will receive a numerical score based on your responses to these questions.  Next, your responses will be evaluated by a Human Resources Specialist and/or a subject matter expert against the information provided in your resume and optional cover letter. Your resume must support your answers to the self-assessment questions. Falsifying your background, education and/or experience is cause for non-selection or disqualification from further consideration.

Please note that a complete application is required for consideration. (Please review the “Required Documents” section of this job announcement to see what must be included in a complete application).