Supervisory Park Ranger (I)

Summary

This position is located at Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.

Open to the first 101 applicants or until 10/29/2024 whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 (EST) on the closing day will receive consideration.

Career-Seasonal appointments are permanent positions and include the same benefits as Career appointments, but do not provide work on a year-round basis. You will work for approximately 11.5 months, and you will be in a non-pay status for the remainder of the year.

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Duties

Yellowstone hosts nearly five million visitors per year, with the majority coming in the months of June - September. The winter season from mid-December to mid-March brings a small number of visitors who enjoy snowmobiling, and snowcoach trips.

The Lake District's elevations range from around 7,500 feet to over 10,000 feet (backcountry peaks). In summer, ample outdoor activities, including boating, fishing, hiking, camping, backpacking, wildlife viewing, and photography, are enjoyed by many. A concessioner operates lodging and restaurant facilities at many major developed areas in the park, and General Stores offer limited groceries as well as some sporting goods, clothing, and gifts. For the summer season, concessioners hire approximately 3,200 employees and the National Park Service employs around 750.

Winters are long, with snow depths of several feet and temperatures that can fall far below zero (temperatures of -20 degrees Fahrenheit and lower are not uncommon). Winters at interior locations are quiet and isolated. The roads to these locations are not plowed after mid-November and the location is only reachable by snowmobile or oversnow vehicle from mid-November through mid-April. Initial and refresher snowmobile operation and safety training is mandatory. A pool of government snowmobiles for personal use is available, but you will be responsible for fuel costs when operating the machines on personal business. Snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and photography are examples of outdoor activities in the winter. Medical services, grocery shopping, banking, entertainment, UPS, FedEx, and other delivery services are NOT available in the winter in the interior of the park. The U.S. Mail is usually delivered twice a week by courier in the winter and deliveries from other package services are made via this route as space is available. No schools exist in the interior. All interior locations maintain minimal staff during the winter months. Many community services are available at Gardiner, MT, and West Yellowstone, MT, just outside the park gates. More extensive services, shopping, and entertainment are available in Jackson, WY, Cody, WY, Livingston, MT, and Bozeman, MT. Employees Park their vehicles at the nearest entrance that can be reached by snowmobile to allow them to drive to a town that provides desired services. The East Entrance Road (to reach Cody, WY) is often closed in the winter due to avalanche danger. This snowmobile commute requires a high level of operational and personal safety awareness. Although winter isolation is acceptable to some employees, many find it a hardship for themselves and their families. Cell service and internet connectivity are not at the standards of speed and sustainable functioning that are common throughout most of the U.S. Learn more about Yellowstone at Yellowstone National Park (U.S. National Park Service) (nps.gov)

This position is located in the Lake District of Yellowstone National Park. This District consists of the following sub-districts: Canyon, Lake/Fishing Bridge, and Grant, and includes the east and south segments of the Grand Loop Road and entrances.

HOUSING IS AVAILABLE YEAR ROUND.

Career-Seasonal appointments are permanent positions and include the same benefits as Career appointments, but do not provide work on a year-round basis. You will work from approximately 11.5, and you will be in a non-pay status approximately from 11/16-11/30, for the remainder of the year.

Major duties include but are not limited to:

• Provides guidance and leadership in the decision-making process for interpretive programs, both on-site and off-site.
• Supervises both permanent and temporary employees performing visitor center and interpretive services.
• Develops professional level interpretive training, coaching, and mentoring to front line interpretive staff.
• Uses knowledge of professional interpretive principles and techniques to ensure programs are properly prepared and presented, and public interactions are carried out effectively and efficiently.
  
  
  

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• U.S. Citizenship required.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males.
• Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program.
• Any individual who is currently holding, or has held within the previous 52 weeks, a General Schedule position under non-temporary appointment in the competitive or excepted service, must meet time-in-grade requirements (must have served 52 weeks at the next lower grade or equivalent in the Federal service); with few exceptions as outlined in 5 CFR 300.603(b). Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal civilian employees applying for reinstatement who have had a break in service of less than one year, as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointments. Time-in-grade does not apply to new excepted service appointments and must be met by the closing date of this announcement.
• You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you.
• You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• If you are a new employee or supervisor in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period.
• You may be required to travel overnight away from home up to 2nights per month.
• You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  
  
  

Qualifications

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-10/29/2024-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 for each federal position listed as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of qualifying experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, 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.

Candidates who do not meet this requirement by close of this announcement will receive no further consideration for this position.

To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess at least one of all of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

EXPERIENCE: At least one full year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 grade level in the Federal service (obtained either in the private or public sectors). Examples of specialized experience may include, developing and implementing interpretative or education programs; supervising, managing, or leading an interpretative or education program(s); planning, programming, and budgeting activities for similar programs; coordinating and participating in interpretative/education programs and planning efforts. You must show hours worked per week.

• OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least three (3) full academic years of progressively higher level graduate education or Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree at an accredited college or university in related fields such as natural resource management, natural sciences, earth sciences, history, archeology, anthropology, park and recreation management, law enforcement/police science, social sciences, museum sciences, business administration, public administration, behavioral sciences, sociology, or other closely related subjects pertinent to the management and protection of natural and cultural resources. You must provide transcripts.
• OR- COMBINATION: Successful completion of a combination of education and experience as described above. To combine education and experience, first take the number of semester hours or equivalent earned towards a graduate degree, more than 36 semester hours, and divide by 18 semester hours or equivalent. Then, take the number of months of experience and divide by 12 months. Add the percentages together. The total must equal at least 100 percent to qualify. You must provide transcripts.
  
  
  

Note: Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level can be combined with the appropriate level of experience to qualify for the GS-11 grade.

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.

Documentation for the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) eligibility, You must submit ALL SF-50s and performance information for each period of temporary/term employment that qualifies for LMWFA. Performance documentation can be obtained by contacting the supervisors for the positions you served in during your 24 months. If they did not complete performance appraisals ask them to provide a statement of performance for each period of service. The statement must specify the dates for each employment period and your level of performance consistent with your SF_50s.

The employees of the National Park Service care for special places that are the heritage of all Americans. Since its inception in 1916, the National Park Service has been dedicated to the preservation and management of this country's outstanding natural, historical, and recreational resources. Park ranger - interpreters connect people to parks. They play a key role in ensuring that visitors have a meaningful, satisfying, and safe park experience, help visitors decide how to spend their time in the park, and inform them about the wonders that await their discovery. Park ranger - interpreters are specially trained to engage the public so that each park visitor can find a personal connection with the meanings and values found in the places and stories of that park. They help visitors explore the many dimensions of parks by introducing them to a variety of perspectives. By providing the opportunity for visitors to care about the places they visit, they promote stewardship and the opportunity for those visitors to care for park resources. National parks are among the most remarkable places in America for recreation, learning, and inspiration. The work done by park ranger-interpreters through effective interpretive and educational programs encourages the development of a personal stewardship ethic and broadens public support for preserving and protecting park resources, so that they may be enjoyed by present and future generations.

Education

To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work.

If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university.

Additional information

A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay.

A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR

• 575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive.
  
  
  

A Relocation Incentive May Be Authorized for a Federal employee when the employee must move, as directed by the National Park Service (NPS) either through a management directed reassignment or selection for employment, to a different location at least 50 miles away from the one where his/her position of record held at time of selection is currently located, due to a need of the NPS. A relocation incentive is not the same as a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and, as such, may be granted in conjunction with one another.

This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Physical Demands: Duties and responsibilities require long workdays and travel by all modes of transportation. The incumbent often must lift heavy boxes and equipment, move furniture, and push or pull an 800-pound snowmobile. Work conditions include extreme heat or cold, high wind, rain, or snow. The duties of the position require mental stamina and considerable physical exertion during peak visitation periods and emergencies.

Working Conditions: The incumbent works in a northern mountainous park with fluctuations in temperature from 100 degrees Fahrenheit in the summer to -50 degrees Fahrenheit in the winter. Snow depths during the winter may vary from two to eight feet. Elevation ranges from 5,000 to 11,000 feet. The emotional environment is most commonly one of high stress.

The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework only during an emergency or natural disaster.

Continuation of Requirements/ Conditions of Employment:

• Applicants must be at least (1)18 years old or (2) at least 16 years old and: (a) Have graduated from high school or been awarded a certificate equivalent to graduating from high school; or (b) Have completed a formal vocational training program; or (c) Have received a statement from school authorities agreeing with their preference for employment rather than continuing their education; or (d) Be currently enrolled in a secondary school and either work only during school vacation periods or work part-time during the school year under a formal student employment program.
  
  
  

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1849 C St. NW

Washington, DC 20240

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