Clarification from the agency

This position is open to all U.S. Citizens or U.S. Nationals.

The Supervisory Police Officer is responsible for the development, implementation, evaluation, and management of all facets of police operations activities at NZP and SCBI.  The incumbent of this position personally and through subordinate supervisors manages the National Zoological Park Police and physical security program for the NZP and the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute.

In this position, you will:

• Lead teams, set goals, align priorities, mentor staff, manage resources, ensure compliance, and foster interagency collaboration.
• Interpret policies, guide staff, and implement creative solutions to improve performance.
• Oversee and conduct criminal investigations, prepare charging documents, and interview victims, witnesses, and suspects to gather evidence.
• Enforce laws, manage diverse operations, and ensure public safety through crowd control and emergency response.

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.

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

Basic Qualifications

Specialized Experience (for positions at GS-4 and above): Experience that provided knowledge of a body of basic laws and regulations, law enforcement operations, practices, and techniques and involved responsibility for maintaining order and protecting life and property. Creditable specialized experience may have been gained in work on a police force; through service as a military police officer; in work providing visitor protection and law enforcement in parks, forests, or other natural resource or recreational environments; in performing criminal investigative duties; or in other work that provided the required knowledge and skills.

In addition to the above: 

Experience: You qualify for this position if you have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the NZ-08/GS-08 level in the Federal Service.  For this position specialized experience is defined as: 1) coordinating and supervising Police Operations, 2) supplying data for estimating budgetary requirements particularly for uniforms, equipment, supplies, etc.; 3) providing recommendations to the Commanding Officer regarding staffing requirements, performance standards, new policies, procedures and instructions for a more efficient police service; 4) rating and reviewing performance of police personnel; and 5) promoting high morale and maintaining discipline.

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.

Investigation of Fitness

A character investigation may be conducted on applicants selected for employment. The purpose of such an investigation is to secure evidence of the candidate's honesty, integrity, general character, and loyalty to the U.S. Government. Such investigations will be conducted under the security requirements of the hiring agency.

Medical Requirements

The duties of these positions require moderate to arduous physical exertion and/or duties of a hazardous nature. The following medical requirements apply to all applicants: good near and distant vision, ability to distinguish basic colors, and ability to hear the conversational voice. Agencies may establish additional, job-related physical or medical requirements provided that the specific position(s) involves the arduous or hazardous duties to which the physical requirements relate.

Applicants and employees must have the capacity to perform the essential functions of the position without risk to themselves or others. Applicants and employees must possess emotional and mental stability. In most instances, a specific medical condition or impairment will not automatically disqualify an applicant or employee. A medical condition or impairment is disqualifying only if the condition, for good medical reason, precludes assignment to or warrants restriction from the duties of the specific position. For some positions, the loss or impairment of a specific function may be compensated for by the satisfactory use of a prosthesis or mechanical aid. Reasonable accommodation shall also be considered in determining an applicant's ability to perform the duties of a position. Reasonable accommodation may include but is not limited to the use of assistive devices, job modification or restructuring, provision of readers and interpreters, or adjusted work schedules.

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:

1. Management
2. Leadership
3. Investigation
4. Patrol

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.