Skip to main content
U.S. flag
 

Museum Curator

Department of the Interior
National Park Service
Cane River Creole National Historic Park

Summary

You will serve as a Museum Curator for the Cane River Creole National Historic Park. Cane River Creole National Historical Park consists of two non-contiguous plantation units located approximately ten miles apart in southern Natchitoches Parish. The park plantation units include 60+ historic structures and two cultural landscapes totaling 62 acres within a historic agricultural setting along Cane River.

Overview

Help
Accepting applications
Location
1 vacancy in the following location:
Work site options
Telework eligible
Yes—This position is suitable for telework and may be allowed to telework with supervisory approval.
Remote job
No
Relocation expenses reimbursed
Yes—You may qualify for reimbursement of relocation expenses in accordance with agency policy.
Salary
$74,678 - $97,087 per year

First time hires to the Federal government normally start at the step 1 rate.

Pay scale & grade
GS 11
Promotion potential
None
Pay scale and grade determines the salary of the job.
Work schedule
Full-time
Travel Required
Occasional travel - You may be expected to travel occasionally for this position.
Appointment type
Permanent
Occupations and job series
Supervisory status
No
Federal service type
This job is in the Competitive Service
Represented by a union
No
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
Financial disclosure required
No
Some jobs require financial disclosure to identify conflicts of interests.
Announcement number
SE-1628-CARI-26-12998699-DE
Control number
878884600

This job is open to

Help

Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to United States Citizens; U.S. Nationals; and Career transition eligibles (CTAP, ICTAP, RPL).

Videos

Duties

Help

At the full performance level (GS-11) the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to the following:

  • Provide direction over extensive museum collections across multiple parks units and ensures that the museum management program is in compliance with all applicable laws, regulations, policy, and ethics.
  • Develop multi-park museum-related planning documents, project scopes, and funding requests.
  • Maintain the appropriate environment for museum collections, including housing, climate, fire protection, and security.
  • Conduct research to catalog museum items and interpret them to the public through exhibits, articles, and other educational and outreach efforts.
  • Ensure accountability of museum collections through registration, accessioning, deaccessioning, and annual reporting.

Requirements

Help

Conditions of employment

  • Must provide proof of U.S. citizenship.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
  • Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
  • Direct Deposit participation required.
  • Successfully pass the E-Verify employment verification check. To learn more, visit www.dhs.gov/EVerify/.
  • You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  • Driver's License: This position requires the incumbent to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of their official duties. Selectee must hold and maintain a valid state driver's license throughout their employment in this position.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period, during which your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest will be evaluated.

This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will consider:
  • your performance and conduct;
  • the needs and interests of the agency;
  • whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency of the Government; and
  • whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service.
Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary or trial period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary or trial period, such appointments are terminated.

*Additional Requirements located under qualifications*

Qualifications

Requirements Continued...
Upon completion of your probationary period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-08/13/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. Failure to adequately provide information needed to determine number of hours worked in each position may result in that time not being credited when evaluating qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the full and/or part-time hours requirement as the service dates will be reflected.

Minimum Qualification Requirements: To qualify for this position, you must meet the following minimum qualifications:

Basic Education Requirements: In addition to the specialized experience requirements for this position, you must meet at least one of the following:

Degree: museum work; or in an applicable subject-matter field. You must submit transcripts.
-OR-
Combination of education and experience -- courses equivalent to a major, as shown above. Plus, appropriate experience or additional education. You must submit transcripts and your resume must reflect hours worked per week.
-OR-
Four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown in A above. You must include number of hours worked per week in your resume.

-AND-

Specialized Experience: In addition to meeting one of the above requirements,you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 level in the federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience includes providing services to address the preservation and accountability needs of a museum collection; application of museum policy and ethics to a program; planning and execution of projects related to the field; and researching and interpreting cultural heritage. You must include hours worked per week in your resume.
-OR-
EDUCATION: Successful completion of a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree, or three-years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to such a degree in museum work or applicable subject-matter field. You must include a copy of your transcripts.
-OR-
Combination of education and experience. To qualify based on a combination of education and experience, you must have successfully completed graduate education beyond the second full year (36 semester hours or equivalent) that is directly related to the work of this position, and possess qualifying specialized experience. To calculate your qualifications, divide your total qualifying graduate semester hours in excess of 36 semester hours by 18 semester hours. Then divide your total months of qualifying specialized experience by 12 months. Add the two percentages together. The combined total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must submit copies of your transcripts with your application and your resume must reflect hours worked per week.

Volunteer 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.

Education

You must submit a copy of your transcript(s) to support claimed education if substituting education for experience. Transcripts must include your name, school name, grades, credit hours earned, major(s), grade point average or class ranking, and date the degree was conferred, if applicable. A typed list of courses, grades, semester/quarter hours, GPA, etc. will not be accepted. Non-submission may result in being rated not qualified for the position. Unofficial transcripts are acceptable, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

Accreditation: Only education from an accredited college or university recognized by the Department of Education is acceptable to meet education requirements or to substitute for experience, if applicable. For additional info, refer to the Office of Personnel Management and U.S. Department of Education.

Foreign Education: To receive credit for education completed outside the United States, you must show proof that the education has been submitted to a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign educational credentials and such education has been deemed at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs. Recognition of Foreign Qualifications | U.S. Department of Education. https://www.ed.gov/about/initiatives/international-affairs/recognition-of-foreign-qualification

Additional information

Additional vacancies may be filled using this job announcement.

All Department of Interior (DOI) employees, their spouses, and minor children may not acquire or retain any claim, permit, lease, small tract entry, or other rights granted by the Department in Federal lands, with limited exceptions. Additional ethics prohibitions can be found here: https://www.doi.gov/ethics/ethics-prohibitions.

Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level.

Telework: The duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

PCS INFORMATION: entitlements for payment of basic moving expenses, as required and to the extent allowed by the Federal Travel Regulation (FTR) 302-3.101, are authorized for eligible applicants changing duty station when the change meets the distance tests as provided in FTR 302-1.1 and 302-2.6. All moving expenses are taxable.

Physical Demands: The work requires mental alertness, better than average manual dexterity, and mobility. Although primarily sedentary, inspections and operations evaluations involve activities demanding a certain amount of exertion such as walking, climbing, crawling, lifting of heavy objects, bending, stooping, and reaching. Working with collections can involve prolonged exposure to hazardous materials and equipment. Working with lighting systems, environmental control systems, and alarm systems can involve exposure to electrical current and the use of power tools with physical hazards.

Working Conditions: Most of the work is performed in an office and storage or laboratory facility. Frequent visits are made to the library, visitor center, and other museums in the park. The incumbent makes occasional field trips to the backcountry. Some travel to other facilities and museums, as well as to training and professional meetings is required.

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.

Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g. resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of any additional assessment(s) required for this position.

Your resume must not exceed 2 pages. Only the document submitted as the "Resume" under the Documents section will be used to determine your qualifications/eligibility and for rating purposes. In the event you submit more than one resume, only the latest submission will be reviewed.

Candidates will be rated and ranked using Category Rating procedures. These procedures place candidates with veteran's preference above non-preference eligibles within each category. Veterans with a service-connected disability of at least 10 percent are listed in the highest quality category, except when the position being filled is scientific or professional at the GS-09 grade level or higher. Under Category Rating, candidates will be rated and ranked into the following categories:

  • Best Qualified - applicants possessing experience that substantially exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are highly proficient in all requirements of the job and can perform effectively in the position

  • Well Qualified - applicants possessing experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in most of the requirements of the job

  • Qualified - applicants possessing experience that meets the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors and are proficient in some, but not all of the requirements of the job.

You will be assessed in the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities, and other characteristics):

  • Interpersonal Skills
  • Planning and Evaluating
  • Project Management
  • Technical Competence

If fewer than three eligible and available candidates per vacancy result, the agency will expand the group of candidates in accordance with the pre-announced supplement strategy and 5 CFR 332.402(f).

Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration. Cheating on an assessment may also result in your removal from consideration.

To be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of additional assessment(s), including a structured resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

Providing false or misleading information on your resume or supporting documentation may result in removal from consideration or other action consistent with applicable federal hiring regulations. Applicants who include vulgar, offensive, or inappropriate language or information in their application package will be ineligible for further consideration for this position.

National Park Service

The Department of the Interior protects and manages the Nation's natural resources and cultural heritage; provides scientific and other information about those resources; and honors its trust responsibilities or special commitments to American Indians, Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians, and affiliated Island Communities. Click here to learn more about The Department of the Interior and its bureaus.

The mission of the National Park Service is to preserve the natural and cultural resources and values of the National Park System for the enjoyment, education, and inspiration of this and future generations. You can make a difference by bringing your unique experience, background, and perspective to our work. Click here to learn more about The National Park Service.

More information about Cane River Creole National Historical Park can be found at www.nps.gov/cari.

Agency contact information

Rebecca Small
Email
rebecca_small@ios.doi.gov
Address
Cane River Creole National Historical Park
PO Box 925
Natchitoches, LA 71458
US

Visit our careers page

Learn more about what it's like to work at National Park Service, what the agency does, and about the types of careers this agency offers.

https://www.youtube.com/embed/nKonBsAFNbY

Your session is about to expire!

Your USAJOBS session will expire due to inactivity in 8 minutes. Any unsaved data will be lost if you allow the session to expire. Click the button below to continue your session.