Summary Serves as the Park Manager, Wind Cave National Park (WICA) of the National Park Service (NPS). Open to the first 101 applicants or until 10/04/2024 whichever comes first. All applications submitted by 11:59 PM EST on the closing day will receive consideration. Responsibilities You will serve as the focal point for the park for providing leadership, motivation, direction, and decisions for multiple divisions. You will oversee the surface and subsurface natural and cultural resources, interpretation and visitor services, visitor protection, maintenance, safety, fire management, and public relations programs. Duties also include research, development, cooperating association management, energy conservation, and administrative functions that include personnel, fiscal, accountability, contracting/procurement, and property management. In addition to managing the staff and resources at Wind Cave National Park, this position oversees the superintendent at Jewel Cave National Monument. Some of the duties you will perform include, but are not limited to: Provide administrative and technical supervision to subordinate staff, providing administrative and technical supervision/direction of the park to facilitate work. Responsibilities include the integration of numerous activities, some of which may be conflicting in nature and require careful planning and coordination with various levels of park personnel to achieve successful results. Direct and supervise the planning, organizing, development, control, and evaluation of operations and management programs for the park. Oversee and manage natural and/or cultural resource protection of the park. Establish and direct external activities and relationships with members of Congress; federal, state and local entities; civic leaders and organizations, educational institutions, indigenous nations; planning agencies; special interest groups; the media; and park neighbors and stakeholders. Represent the National Park Service and the park in primary communications. Manage and maintain a positive working relationship with the park employees including community representatives and a variety of officials within and outside the Bureau concerning the delegated authorities related to the management and preservation of the cultural, historical, and natural resources of the park. Area Information: The park superintendent serves at Wind Cave National Park, Hot Springs, SD. The 33,970-acre park is the sixth oldest park in the system and the first to protect a cave. Wind Cave is the seventh longest and one of the most complex caves in the world, with 160+ miles of surveyed passages and numerous backcountry caves. Named for barometric winds at its entrance, this maze of passages is home to boxwork, a unique formation rarely found elsewhere. Bison, elk, mule deer, pronghorn, black footed ferrets, prairie dogs, mountain lions, bobcat and coyote inhabit the rolling mixed grass prairie and Ponderosa forests of the hillsides. Wind Cave historically and today, plays an important role in the traditions and culture of many Tribal Nations and is the site of origin for the Lakota people. The park is located in the southern Black Hills of southwest South Dakota, approximately 5 ½ hours north of Denver, CO. Medical and dental services, shopping, restaurants, and churches of most faiths are available in Hot Springs (12 miles) and Custer (20 miles). The full-service community of Rapid City, SD (pop. 60,000) is 60 miles away. Climate extremes range from sub-zero temperatures during winter to over 100 degrees during summer. Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship required. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication. Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males You 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. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes. You may be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority. The position to which you will be appointed is subject to a financial disclosure reporting requirement and you will be required to complete a new entrant Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE Form 450) within 30 days of your appointment. Qualifications All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-10/04/2024-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. To qualify for this position at the GS-14 grade level, you must possess 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-13 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Examples of specialized experience could include, but are not limited to, the following: management, assistant or program specialist work involving development and implementation of complex, controversial, and/or sensitive policy related to protection and conservation of park areas or similar operations; directs programs and work through direct and indirect supervision. You must include hours per week worked. 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. ICTAP/CTAP: 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 on all competencies. Federal employees seeking CTAP/ICTAP eligibility must submit proof that they meet the requirements of 5 CFR 330.605(2) for CTAP and 5 CFR 330.704 for ICTAP. This includes a copy of the agency notice, a copy of their most recent Performance Rating, and a copy of their most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location. Please annotate your application to reflect that you are applying as a CTAP/ICTAP eligible. If you are selected for Federal employment, you will be required to fill out a Declaration of Federal Employment, OF-306, prior to being appointed to determine your suitability for Federal employment and to authorize a background investigation. Failing to answer all questions truthfully and completely or providing false statements on your application may be grounds for not hiring you, or for firing you after you begin work. Also, you may be punished by fine or imprisonment (U.S. Code, Title 18, section 1001). Education There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level of this announcement. 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 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: Occasionally is required to work under unusual and stressful situations which call for physical stamina and emotional stability. The work is rarely sedentary, and requires walking, driving, standing and bending. Travel to other areas of often required and includes regularly travel between the two park units. A valid driver's license is required. Working Conditions: Work is performed primarily in an office setting. However, work is also performed out-of-doors in various types of weather and terrain. The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval. 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 SF50s.
