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Archeologist

Department of Agriculture
Forest Service
This job announcement has closed

Summary

The position is located on the Ouachita National Forest, Mena and Oklahoma Ranger Districts. Two positions will be filled from this announcement.

This position is located on a Forest Service unit, where the incumbent serves an Archeologist responsible for inventory, evaluation, protection, and development of historic and prehistoric sites.

See additional information for contact information.

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
08/23/2021 to 08/30/2021
Salary
$53,433 to - $69,462 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 9 - 11
Locations
2 vacancies in the following locations:
Mena, AR
Broken Bow, OK
Telework eligible
Yes—as determined by the agency policy.
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel for this position.
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Competitive
Promotion potential
11
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Not Required
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
21-R8GVAUG-0809-831845DP-AW
Control number
611554900

Duties

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  • Duties listed below are at the target grade.
  • Represent the agency at regional and national scientific organization and society meetings to present and exchange information.
  • Consult with recognized Indian Tribes under provisions of the National Historic Preservation Act (NHPA), and Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) to discuss concerns, ensure compliance, and assess impact.
  • Provide heritage and cultural resource management orientation to Forest Service personnel on statutes, regulations and purpose of work to be performed.
  • Interpret heritage and cultural resource to public and professional contacts.
  • Coordinate the budget and project plan of work for archeological and cultural activities.
  • Supervise the excavation of archeological resources protection act assessments to manage on-site archeological activities.
  • Administer archeological examination of road, reservoir, recreation, and other ground disturbing projects where archeological materials may be subject to destruction or damage for protection and mitigation of cultural sites.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
  • Subject to satisfactory adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
  • Successful completion of one-year probationary period, unless previously served.
  • 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 E-Verify.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Your application and resume must clearly show that you possess the experience requirements. Transcripts must be provided for qualifications based on education. Provide course descriptions as necessary.

GS-0193:
Basic Requirement for GS-9/11 :
A. Education

  1. Degree: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in an accredited college or university leading to a bachelor's or higher degree that included a major field of study that included 3 semester hours each in the following course areas:
  • History of archeology.
  • Archeology of a major geographical area such as North America or Africa.
  • Regional archeology, archeological cultures, or sites in a specific part or portion of a major geographical area to acquire or develop a foundation for regional specialization for professional development.
  • Theory and methods of archeology. Methods include, but are not limited to, typology, classification, sampling, cultural evolution, diffusion, dating, and analytical techniques.
  • Archeological field school, to provide a basic understanding of theoretical and practical approaches to research design implementation, field preservation techniques, and report preparation by participation in actual field work.
AND Six semester hours of related course work in:
  • geography, geology, or cultural geography;
  • history, historiography, or historical archeology;
  • environmental studies;
  • scientific writing (nonfiction English composition); and/or
  • surveying;
AND Archeological field school.

2. Related Curriculum: degree in anthropology (with emphasis on ethnology, physical anthropology, or scientific linguistics), history, American studies, or a related discipline may be accepted as satisfying in full the educational requirements, provided the curriculum supplied academic course work sufficiently similar to the requirements in A.1 (including archeological field school). OR

B. Combination of Education and Experience College-level education or training that provided knowledge equivalent to that described in A above, plus appropriate technical experience or additional education.

OR

C. Experience Four years of archeological work experience that demonstrated a thorough knowledge of the fundamental principles and theories of professional archeology. The work experience must have included archeology field experience, which may include that gained in an archeological field school. Field experience should have included a combination of professional experience in archeological survey, excavation, laboratory analysis, and preparation of written materials. Applicants with such field experience should, after additional experience under the direction of a higher-grade archeologist, be able to demonstrate the ability to be a crew chief, directing the work of others at a single location as a part of a larger archeological project.

In addition to meeting the basic requirement, you must also possess experience and/or directly related education in the amounts listed below.

Specialized Experience Requirement:
For the GS-09: 2years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Master's degree OR Master's degree or equivalent graduate degree OR 1 year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-07 level in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Assisted in conducting background studies and document reviews pertaining to archeological project development; participated in archeological survey and site evaluation work and preparation of technical reports; interpreted cultural resources to public contacts in one-on-one conversations; received formal and on-the-job instructions and training on the practical application of archeological principles, theories, methods, practices, and techniques; and/or developed and coordinated networks and contacts beneficial to the successful performance of archeological work assignments, such as interacting technically with colleagues and supervisors, and demonstrating the ability to work cooperatively with other persons.

For the GS-11: 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree OR Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree OR 1 year specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level in the Federal service. Examples of specialized experience include: Performed standard tasks or portions of larger projects of an archeological program, such as conducted performance studies and examined historical research documents pertaining to project development; interpreted cultural resources to public and professional audiences through presentations, exhibit development, or publication in professional journals; assisted professional archeologists in developing/enhancing archeological program components, such as scientific reporting, records and database management, and cultural resource condition monitoring; and/or evaluated problems associated with archeological site protection and implemented corrective measures within the framework of archeological program and legal requirements.

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; religious; 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.

TIME IN GRADE REQUIREMENT: If you are a current federal employee in the General Schedule (GS) pay plan and applying for a promotion opportunity, you must meet time-in-grade (TIG) requirements of 52 weeks of service at the next lower grade level in the normal line of progression for the position being filled. This requirement must be met by the closing date of this announcement.

Additional information

Mena, AR Position: For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Tim Oosterhous at 479-394-2382, or tim.oosterhous@usda.gov

Broken Bow, OK Position: For additional information about the duties of this position, please contact Patti Turpin at 580-494-6402, ext. 119 or patti.turpin@usda.gov

Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP), Reemployment Priority List (RPL), or Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP): To exercise selection priority for this vacancy, CTAP/RPL/ICTAP candidates must meet the basic eligibility requirements and all selective factors. CTAP/ICTAP eligibles must meet the agency's definition for a quality candidate as provided in the How You Will Be Evaluated section of this announcement to be considered.

The USDA Forest Service has legislative authority to recruit and fill Permanent (Career/Career-Conditional), Temporary, and Term Appointments under the USDA Demonstration Project. Under this authority, any U.S. citizen may apply.

If you are selected for a position with further promotion potential, you will be placed under a career development plan, and may be non-competitively promoted if you successfully complete the requirements and if recommended by management. However, promotion is not guaranteed.

This is not a bargaining unit designated position.

Government Housing is not available

Daycare facilities are not available


This position may be eligible to telework up to four days per week, based upon the duties of the position. This position may also be eligible for flexible work arrangements as determined by agency policy and any applicable collective bargaining agreements.

The Forest Service may use certain incentives and hiring flexibilities, currently offered by the Federal government, to attract highly qualified candidates. Additional information is available at https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/pay-leave/pay-and-leave-flexibilities-for-recruitment-and-retention/

How you will be evaluated

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

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

You will be evaluated in accordance with the category rating procedure as defined in the USDA Demonstration Project Plan. Applicants who meet the basic minimum qualification requirements established for the position will be placed in the Eligible category. You will be further evaluated against criteria for placement in the Quality category. This evaluation is based on the level of your experience, education, and/or training as determined by your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire. Individuals with veterans' preference are listed ahead of applicants who do not have veterans' preference within each category.

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 Federal documents could be grounds for non-selection or disciplinary action up to including removal from the Federal service.

To view the application form, visit: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/11206012

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