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Summary

This position is located in the National Collections Program (NCP), Under Secretary for Museums & Culture at the Smithsonian Institution (SI).  The National Collections Program serves as a principal advocate and advisor to Smithsonian leadership, collecting unit directors, and staff on matters relating to collections stewardship.

Overview

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Accepting applications
Posted yesterday · Apply in 1 day
Due by 11:59 p.m. ET on July 22, 2026
Location
Few vacancies in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—Ad Hoc
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Salary
$85,447 - $111,087 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 11
Promotion potential
12
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time - Full-Time, Permanent
Appointment type
Permanent - Federal
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
Yes
Drug test
No
Security clearance
Not Required
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Jobs require a background check and some require a security clearance. The type depends on the job.
Background check type
Announcement number
26R-MP-313845-DEU-NCP
Control number
877164900

This job is open to

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Clarification from the agency

This position is open to all U.S. Citizens or U.S. Nationals. Note: Federal employees with permanent status or individuals eligible for special appointing authorities may also apply to Job Announcement # 26R-MP-313845-MPA-NCP More than one selection may be made from this announcement.

Duties

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The Collections Emergency Program Specialist will assist in drafting collections emergency policies and procedures that outline staff responsibilities across the disaster life cycle, including preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery.

In this position, you will:

  • Support the development and implementation of strategies, standards, and best practices for the Preparedness and Response in Collections Emergencies (PRICE) Program across Smithsonian museums, archives, and libraries.
  • Support the development and implementation of collections emergency policies and procedures that define staff responsibilities across preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery.
  • Work collaboratively with NCP staff, Smithsonian unit staff, and external colleagues to support the integration of collections emergency management content into collections stewardship practice.
  • Maintain awareness of trends and innovations in collections emergency management and collections management operations practices. 
  • Maintain and modify multiple internal programmatic and project-based information sharing platforms, including SharePoint and other digital systems, to support the dissemination of collections emergency management information across museums, archives, libraries, committees, and working groups. 

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • Pass Pre-employment Background Investigation
  • May need to complete a Probationary Period
  • Maintain a Bank Account for Direct Deposit/Electronic Transfer
  • Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered with Selective Service.

Conditions of Employment

Qualification requirements must be met by the closing date of the announcement.

For information on qualification requirements, see Qualification Standards Handbook for General Schedule Positions on OPM website.

Qualifications

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the GS-09 level in the Federal Service.  For this position, specialized experience is defined as supporting and assisting with developing, strengthening, and implementing strategies, standards, and best practices for collections emergency preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery programs.

Your resume must be no more than two (2) pages and should clearly demonstrate how your experience aligns with the responsibilities and specialized experience required for this position. Do not copy language directly from the vacancy announcement, as you will be deemed ineligible for consideration. Instead, provide detailed, descriptive information about your actual experience.

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.

Part-time and/or unpaid experience related to this position will be considered to determine the total number of years and months of experience. Be sure to note the number of paid or unpaid hours worked each week.

Or Education: Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree or 3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree or LL.M.  

Or a Combination: Education and experience may be combined to meet the basic qualifications. For a full explanation of this option please see the Qualification Standards.

Special Instructions for Foreign Education: If you are qualifying by education and/or you have education completed in a foreign college/university described above, it is your responsibility to provide transcripts and proof of U.S. accreditation for foreign study. For instructions on where to fax these documents, see the "Required Documents" section of this announcement.

Education

No Basic Education Requirements.

Additional information

This position is included in the bargaining unit.  

Recruitment Incentive: Recruitment incentive(s) may be authorized for this position.  However, approval for incentives are contingent upon various availability. If authorized, certain incentives will require the incumbent to sign a service agreement to remain in the Federal government for a certain time period.

Note: This statement does not imply nor guarantee an incentive will be offered and paid.

Selections may be made for vacancies across the Smithsonian Institution (SI). By applying to this position, you agree to allow your application and other personal information to be shared with one or more SI hiring officials for employment consideration for same/similar positions within the location(s) identified in this announcement.

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.

How you will be evaluated

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

Applicants for this position may be evaluated in multiple stages. The first stage is an evaluation of your responses to the online multiple-choice questions that assess your experience, education, and/or training for the job related competencies below:

  • Knowledge of museum, archival and library collections and collections management principles, policies, standards, and practices, including works of art and historical artifacts. 

  • Knowledge of collections emergency management principles, including preparedness, mitigation, response, and recovery.

  •  Knowledge of program evaluation methods to assess the effectiveness, efficiency, and impact of collections emergency initiatives in interpreting qualitative and quantitative data to provide recommendations, improve procedures, and ensure alignment with established program goals, performance indicators, and institutional priorities.

  •  Knowledge of digital platforms, including SharePoint and other information sharing systems, to maintain, modify, and manage programmatic and project-based resources that support communication, documentation, and dissemination of collections emergency management information.

Applicants who meet or exceed minimum qualifications will be assigned to one of three category groups based on job-related criteria:

  • Best Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and excels in most of the job related competencies above.
  • Better Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements and satisfies most of the job related competencies above.
  • Good Category - Meets the minimum qualification requirements, but does not satisfy most of the job related competencies above to a substantive degree.

This category rating process does not add veterans' preference points or apply the "rule of three", but protects the rights of veterans by placing them ahead of non-preference eligibles within each category. A selecting official may make selections from the highest quality category (Best Category) provided no preference eligible in that category is passed over to select a non-preference eligible in that category unless the requirements of 5 U.S.C. 3317(b) or 3318(b) are satisfied. Preference eligibles who meet minimum qualification requirements and who have a compensable service-connected disability of at least 10 percent must be listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-9 grade level or higher. Applicants who have not submitted a resume in the USAjobs system and/or have not answered all of the vacancy questions will not be considered for this position.

Important Note:

Your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses to the occupational questionnaire or other assessment tool for consistency. If a determination is made that you have rated yourself higher than is supported by your resume, you will be assigned a rating commensurate to your described experience. Your resume should provide sufficient information regarding how your education and experience relate to this position, including the major duties and qualifications criteria listed.


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Smithsonian Institution

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Agency contact information

Marie Parks
Phone
202-633-6332
Email
Parksma@si.edu
Address
SMITHSONIAN
PO Box 37012
600 Maryland Avenue, SW
Suite 5017
Washington, District of Columbia 20013-7012
United States

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