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Social Worker (Program Manager) - Associate Chief of Staff

Department of Veterans Affairs
Veterans Health Administration
Veterans Health Administration
This job announcement has closed

Summary

Relocation Incentive Authorized

The Associate Chief of Staff (ACOS) for Mental Health Service is a senior social worker program manager at VA Puget Sound Health Care System. The ACOS is administratively and clinically responsible for all mental health staff and programs, and for service delivery provided throughout the Mental Health Service Line at VAPSHCS, which has major facilities in Seattle and American Lake (Tacoma), as well as multiple community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs).

Overview

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Hiring complete
Open & closing dates
07/01/2025 to 07/15/2025
Salary
$164,637 to - $195,200 per year
Pay scale & grade
GS 15
Location
Seattle, WA
1 vacancy
Remote job
No
Telework eligible
No
Travel Required
Not required
Relocation expenses reimbursed
No
Appointment type
Permanent
Work schedule
Full-time
Service
Excepted
Promotion potential
None
Job family (Series)
Supervisory status
Yes
Security clearance
Other
Drug test
No
Position sensitivity and risk
Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk
Trust determination process
Announcement number
CBSV-12754461-25-DB
Control number
839852600

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Duties

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Total Rewards of a Allied Health Professional

MANAGEMENT

  • Responsible for the daily clinical operations of Mental Health Service.
  • Responsible for assessing the needs of the veteran population and setting the direction of the clinical programming within the service line.
  • Fiduciary responsibility to ensure that they optimize the use of the resources available.
  • Uses data and analysis to make clinical programming and resource decisions.
  • Responsible for ensuring supervision of all clinical staff within the service line.
  • Responsible for development, implementation, and oversight of operational policies and procedures for the Service Line.
  • Monitors provider-specific workload reports to team members and ensures provider adherence to workload standards.
  • Functions as the first line supervising authority (i.e., rater) for the Deputy ACOS for Mental Health Service, Mental Health Service Line Leaders and as appropriate Mental Health Program Directors, and the Mental Health Service Line Administrative Officer/Business Manager.
  • Provides clinical supervision to Mental Health interns and other trainees as appropriate.
CLINICAL
  • The Associate Chief of Staff for Mental Health will carry a limited clinical load.
  • Conducts appropriate history, psychosocial evaluations, and mental status examinations on assigned patients
  • Completes intake assessments
  • Develops treatment plans (in coordination with the multidisciplinary treatment team when appropriate).
  • Initiates consults and referrals as indicated.
RESEARCH/EDUCATION
  • Actively involved in research, either as principal investigator, co-investigator, and/or collaborator.
  • Serves on a Psychology Service committee concerned with oversight of the training program.


Work Schedule: Monday - Friday 8am - 4:30pm
Recruitment Incentive (Sign-on Bonus): Authorized
Permanent Change of Station (Relocation Assistance): Not Authorized
Pay: Competitive salary and regular salary increases
Paid Time Off: 37-50 days of annual paid time offer per year (13-26 days of annual leave, 13 days of sick leave, 11 paid Federal holidays per year)
Parental Leave: After 12 months of employment, up to 12 weeks of paid parental leave in connection with the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child.
Child Care Subsidy: After 60 days of employment, full time employees with a total family income below $144,000 may be eligible for a childcare subsidy up to 25% of total eligible childcare costs for eligible children up to the monthly maximum of $416.66.
Retirement: Traditional federal pension (5 years vesting) and federal 401K with up to 5% in contributions by VA
Insurance: Federal health/vision/dental/term life/long-term care (many federal insurance programs can be carried into retirement)
Telework: Not Available
Virtual: This is not a virtual position.
Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
  • Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
  • You may be required to serve a trial period.
  • Subject to background/security investigation.
  • Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
  • Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

Qualifications

Applicants pending the completion of educational or certification/licensure requirements may be referred and tentatively selected but may not be hired until all requirements are met.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements within 30 days of the closing date of this announcement.


Basic Requirements:

  • United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
  • Education. Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work.
    • Verification of the degree can be made by going to http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work.
  • Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level.
    • Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/.
  • English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. ยง 7403(f).
May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations:

Social Work Program Manager, GS-15
  • Experience/Education. The social work program manager at the GS-15 grade level must have at least four years of experience as a VA clinical social worker with at least one-year equivalent to the GS-14 grade level. The social work program manager must evidence possession of progressively higher supervisory and management skills. Experience must demonstrate possession of advanced practice skills in administration, demonstrating progressively more professional competency skills and judgment. The individual may have certification or other post-master's degree training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship, or equivalent supervised professional experience.
  • Licensure/Certification. The social work manager must be licensed or certified at the advanced practice level, and must be able to provide supervision for licensure.
  • Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs). In addition to the experience above, the candidate must fully meet the KSAs for the GS-14 grade level and demonstrate all the following professional KSAs:
    • Ability to manage and direct unusually large interdisciplinary programs, complex organizational units, apply effective management practices, plan, design, implement, and evaluate a program(s) that encompasses a wide range of facility/ healthcare system/VISN/CO activities.
    • Ability to oversee issues related to budget projections and participate with senior leaders from the governing body, management and staff in upholding the facility mission, vision, value and strategic plan to include directly interacting with elected officials on VA related issues/concerns (i.e., members of Congress, Veterans Service Organizations, State and Local entities).
    • Knowledge in establishing policy, procedures and quality monitors while considering multiple priorities, funding sources, and varying resources.
    • Skill in assessing need for basic and complex services across multiple programmatic patient care venues, coordinate and expand the efforts of multiple program elements across a complex system.
    • Knowledge to complete all program evaluations and documents required by the medical center, VISN and VHA Central Office, ensuring compliance with appropriate accrediting bodies such as The Joint Commission (TJC), Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF), and Association for the Accreditation of Human Research Protection Programs (AAHRPP).
    • Ability to orient, teach and serve as a consultant to other medical center staff and trainees and assists in their formulation of the clinical social work characteristics and appropriate treatment expectations regarding Veterans, family members and caregivers.
    • Skill in balancing responsibilities in a complex environment and to work with great autonomy, set priorities and delegate tasks, meet multiple deadlines; analyze complex organizational problems and develop and implement effective solutions for those problems.
    • Ability to promote and effectively manage a workforce which embraces the values and needs of all individuals through long-term commitment, strategic and business planning, education, experience which broadens the mindset and by fully managing human resources.
GS-14 Social Worker Program Manager KSAs:
  • Skill in large scale program coordination and administration across multiple sites, which includes consultation, negotiation, and monitoring.
  • Ability to translate management goals and objectives into well-coordinated and controlled work operations.
  • Ability to analyze organizational and operational problems and to develop and implement solutions that result in sound operation of the program.
  • Ability to collaborate with internal and external partners to further program goals and enhance patient centered care.
  • Ability to provide the full range of supervisory duties which would include responsibility for assignment of work to be performed; performance evaluations; selection of staff, training, and recommendation of awards, advancements, and when appropriate, disciplinary action.
  • Ability to oversee the fiscal matters of the functions supervised (including fund controls, contracts, and equipment expenditures), forecast resource and equipment needs, and administer the allocated budget.
  • Skill in developing policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines for the program and in participating in national program development.
  • Ability to collaborate with internal VHA partners, locally and on a national level, as well as external community partners to further program goals and enhance patient centered care.

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/.

The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-15. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is GS-15.

Physical Requirements: Light Lifting, under 15 lbs; Use of fingers; Mental and Emotional Stability.

Environmental Factors: Working closely with others; Working alone; Protracted or irregular hours of work.

Education

Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/.

Additional information

During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies.

This position is in the Excepted Service and does not confer competitive status.

VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply. The health-related positions in VA are covered by Title 38, and are not covered by the Schedule A excepted appointment authority.

If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.

Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

How you will be evaluated

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

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Your application, resume, C.V., and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect consideration for employment.

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; religions; 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.

The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position.

It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment.

Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

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