Summary
About the Position:
The Department of Defense Education Activity (DoDEA) Office of the General Counsel facilitates DoDEA's global educational mission by providing high quality and timely legal advice and counsel, effective advocacy, and creative problem-solving.
Federal employees in Sembach, Germany are currently entitled to receive a 25% Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) in addition to the base salary. This rate is subject to change.
Duties
- Serves as an Attorney-Advisor by assisting General Counsel, DoDEA in planning and providing legal assistance, advice, and representation in support of DoDEA and DoDEA's regional leadership.
- Incumbent serves as a management representative or agency advisor at collective bargaining sessions with union officials.
- In judicial litigation matters, the incumbent ensures all necessary preparations are accurate and complete.
- Conducts extensive research and develops positions and draft policies on special education and education law questions in the absence of federal and state law.
- Participates as a lecturer in various training programs and drafts preventative legal guidance for DoDEA personnel (particularly on matters of ethics, employment, and special education law).
- Provides legal advice and services with respect to questions, regulations, practices, or other matters falling within the purview of DoDEA and DoD. This this may include conducting, reviewing or advising on investigations.
- Provides expert advice in Government Ethics, Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act, Administrative Procedure Act, and other federal practice areas.
- Provides legal advice and assistance on DoDEA labor and civilian personnel matters, including employee relations, equal opportunity and civil rights.
- Represents DoDEA in hearings and other administrative proceedings before the EEOC, MSPB, and FLRA and represents DoDEA management in grievance proceedings.
- Provides legal advice and assistance to DoDEA regional and school-level leadership, including but not limited to:
- The Chief of the Center for Instructional Leadership (CIL); CIL Team; Forward Integrated Support Team; Superintendents; Principals, and other regional/field administrators.
- Provides legal advice in the area of special education and education law in direct support of school-level operations and the development of DoDEA-wide policies and procedures for critical areas of compliance with the Individuals
- with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA); Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act; Federal education statutes; and, student rights (e.g. freedom of speech, search and seizure, student privacy, etc.) under the U.S. Constitution and associated case law.
- Develops tools and trainings for special education educators, regular education educators, DoDEA OGC field attorneys, administrators, DoDEA HQ Staff (e.g. special education and Student Support Services) to aid DoDEA
- in ensuring the provision of a Free and Appropriate Public Education to students covered by the IDEA or students with disabilities requiring accommodations under
- Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act. Incumbent will advance the prevention, early resolution, and defense of special education or Rehabilitation Act litigation.
Requirements
Conditions of Employment
- Male applicants born after December 31, 1959, must complete a Pre-Employment Certification Statement for Selective Service Requirement.
- Proof of U.S. Citizenship required.
- Direct deposit of pay is required.
- Trial or probationary period may be required.
- Appointment subject to a suitability/fitness determination, as determined by a background investigation.
- This position requires a Tier 3 (T3) investigation. Must be able to obtain and maintain a Secret security clearance.
- This position requires you to submit a Public Financial Disclosure Report (OGE 278) or a Confidential Financial Disclosure Report (OGE450) upon entry, and annually thereafter.
- Must be able to satisfy the requirements of the 26JUL12 DODI 1400.25 V1230, DoD Civilian Personnel Management System: Employment in Foreign Areas and Employee Return Rights. Visit http://www.dtic.mil/whs/directives/corres/pdf/140025v1230.pdf.
- Individuals hired from the Continental United States (CONUS) and their family members (who are US citizens) are required to obtain Official Passports prior to departure to the overseas area.
Qualifications
Who May Apply: U.S. Citizens
In order to qualify, you must meet the education and/or experience requirements described below. 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). You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience. Your resume must clearly describe your relevant experience; if qualifying based on education, your transcripts will be required as part of your application.
VETERAN'S PREFERENCE INFORMATION: There is no formal rating system for applying veteran's preference to attorney appointments in the excepted service; however, the Department of the Army considers veteran's preference eligibility a positive factor for attorney hiring. Applicants eligible for veteran's preference must include that information in their cover letter or resume and attach supporting documents (e.g., DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to their submissions. Although the point-preference system is not used, applicants eligible to claim a 10-point preference must submit a Standard Form (SF) 15, Application for 10-Point Veteran Preference, and supporting documentation required for the specific type of preference claimed. (SF 15, which lists the types of 10-point preference and the required supporting documents, is available from the Office of Personnel Management Website at http://www.opm.gov/.). To successfully claim veteran's preference, your resume/supplemental data must clearly show your entitlement.
Experience: You must have three or more years of professional legal experience, acquired after being admitted to the bar, commensurate with the duties and responsibilities of the position. Graduation from an ABA-Accredited Law School in the top 25% of the class or an advanced law degree such as an LLM may substitute for one year of the required professional legal experience.
Bar Membership: You must currently be a member in good standing of the bar of a State, Territory of the United States, District of Columbia, or Commonwealth of Puerto Rico
You will be evaluated on the basis of your level of competency in the following areas:
Education
FOREIGN EDUCATION: If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet the qualification requirements, you must show the 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. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html
How You Will Be Evaluated
You will be evaluated for this job based on how well you meet the qualifications above.
Once the announcement has closed, a review of your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) will be used to determine whether you meet the qualification requirements listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified, your résumé and supporting documentation will be compared against your responses to the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If, after reviewing your résumé and/or supporting documentation, a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications and/or experience, you may lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully when applying, errors or omissions may affect your eligibility.
Additional Information regarding overseas appointments:
- If an employee brings a child to an overseas location and that child is entitled to attend a DoD school on a space-required basis in accordance with DoDEA Regulation 1342.13, the DoDEA and the Military Department responsible for providing related services will ensure that the child, if eligible for special education, receives a free appropriate public education, including related services pursuant to DoDI 1342.12 and DoDM 1342.12.
- If an employee brings an infant or toddler (up to 3 years of age) to an overseas location, and that infant or toddler, but for the child's age, is entitled to attend the DoDEA on a space-required basis in accordance with DoDEA Regulation 1342.13, then the Military Department responsible for EIS will provide the infant or toddler with the required EIS in accordance with the eligibility criteria consistent with DoDI 1342.12 and DoDM 1342.12.
- If an employee brings a family member to an overseas location who requires medical or dental care, then the employee will be responsible for obtaining and paying for such care. Access for civilian employees and their families to military medical and dental treatment facilities is on a space-available and reimbursable basis only.
- Family member appointments will expire based on the sponsor's rotation date. Family member appointments may not exceed two months after an employee is no longer considered a family member within the local commuting area due to PCS or divorce of sponsor or, in the case of a child, the age of 23. Family members are defined according to the DODI 1400.25, Vol.1232 as: For a military member whose duty station is in a foreign area, the member's spouse or unmarried dependent child. For a civilian US employee as defined by section 2105 of Title 5, United States Code, the employee's spouse, domestic partner, or unmarried dependent child, or unmarried child of the employee's spouse or domestic partner. A family member must physically reside with his or her sponsor to receive family member preference.
Required Documents
The documents you are required to submit vary based on whether or not you are eligible for preference in federal employment. A complete description of preference categories and the associated required documents is in the Applicant Checklist (External).
As described above, your complete application includes your resume, your responses to the online questionnaire, and documents which prove your eligibility to apply. If you fail to provide these documents, you will be marked as having an incomplete application package and you will not be considered any further.
1. Your resume:
- Your resume may be submitted in any format and must support the specialized experience described in this announcement.
- If your resume includes a photograph or other inappropriate material or content, it will not be used to make eligibility and qualification determinations and you may not be considered for this vacancy.
- For qualifications determinations your resume must contain hours worked per week and the dates of employment (i.e., HRS per week and month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application will be marked as incomplete and you will not receive consideration for this position.
- You should list any relevant performance appraisals and incentive awards in your resume as that information may be taken into consideration during the selection process. If selected, you may be required to provide supporting documentation.
- For additional information see: What to include in your resume.
2. Other supporting documents:
- Cover Letter, optional
- Most recent Performance Appraisal, if applicable
- License or Certification: If this position requires a job-related licensure or certification, you MUST submit a copy of your license or certification with your application package or you will be rated ineligible. To determine if this position requires a job-related licensure or certification, please review the Qualifications section listed above.
- Transcripts: This position has an individual occupational requirement and/or allows for substitution of education for experience. You MUST submit a copy of your transcript with your application package or you will be rated ineligible.
- Official Transcripts: Failure to provide copies of all applicable transcripts will result in disqualification due to incomplete application. You must scan, upload and attach legible photocopies of the following official transcripts:
- Bachelor's Transcript
- Master's Transcript. This transcript is required IF it applies to you.
- EDS Transcript. This transcript is required IF it applies to you.
- Doctorate's transcript. This transcript is required IF it applies to you.
- NOTE: Transcripts must include the date and degree was conferred. Transcripts without this information will not be reviewed and will result in disqualification. Your transcripts must clearly identify coursework required for the position you are applying for. Transcripts submitted in other languages other than English must include an official translation or will not be considered. Computer print-outs of transcripts, links to transcripts, grade reports, copies of degree diplomas or certificates, illegible copies and unofficial copies of transcripts will not be acceptable. Receipt of these documents will result in automatic disqualification.
NOTE: Documents submitted as part of the application package, to include supplemental documents, may be shared beyond the Human Resources Office. Some supplemental documents such as military orders and marriage certificates may contain personal information for someone other than you. You may sanitize these documents to remove another person's personal information before you submit your application. You may be asked to provide an un-sanitized version of the documents if you are selected to confirm your eligibility.
Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP). If you are a Federal employee in the competitive service and your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority for this position. To receive selection priority, you must: (1) meet ICTAP eligibility criteria (2) be rated well-qualified for the position and; (3) submit the appropriate documentation to support your ICTAP eligibility. To be considered well-qualified and receive selection priority applicants must satisfy all qualification requirements for the position and receive a score of 90 or above. Additional information about the program is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website. Additional information about the program is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website.
If you are relying on your education to meet qualification requirements:
Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education in order for it to be credited towards qualifications. Therefore, provide only the attendance and/or degrees from
schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Failure to provide all of the required information as stated in this vacancy announcement may result in an ineligible rating or may affect the overall rating.
How to Apply
To apply for this position, you must complete the online questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section above.
The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 07/01/2024 to receive consideration.
- To begin, click Apply to access the online application. You will need to be logged into your USAJOBS account to apply. If you do not have a USAJOBS account, you will need to create one before beginning the application (https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12441260).
- Follow the prompts to select your résumé and/or other supporting documents to be included with your application package. You will have the opportunity to upload additional documents to include in your application before it is submitted. Your uploaded documents may take several hours to clear the virus scan process.
- After acknowledging you have reviewed your application package, complete the Include Personal Information section as you deem appropriate and click to continue with the application process.
- You will be taken to the online application which you must complete in order to apply for the position. Complete the online application, verify the required documentation is included with your application package, and submit the application. You must re-select your resume and/or other documents from your USAJOBS account or your application will be incomplete.
- It is your responsibility to verify that your application package (resume, supporting documents, and responses to the questionnaire) is complete, accurate, and submitted by the closing date. Uploaded documents may take up to one hour to clear the virus scan.
- Additional information on how to complete the online application process and submit your online application may be found on the USA Staffing Applicant Resource Center.
To verify the status of your application, log into your USAJOBS account (https://my.usajobs.gov/Account/Login), all of your applications will appear on the Welcome screen. The Application Status will appear along with the date your application was last updated. For information on what each Application Status means, visit: https://www.usajobs.gov/Help/how-to/application/status/.
Additional Information:
- Selection is subject to restrictions resulting from Department of Defense referral system for displaced employees.
- Locality pay does not apply in the overseas area.
- Be advised that effective Jan. 1 2018, under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, most civilian employee relocation allowances became taxable. The Relocation Income Tax Allowance (RITA) reimburses eligible employees for the additional Federal, State, and local income taxes incurred as a result of receiving taxable travel income. For more information, visit https://www.dfas.mil/civilianemployees/civrelo/Civilian-Moving-Expenses-Tax-Deduction.html.
Next steps
If you provided an email address, you will receive an email message acknowledging receipt of your application. Your application package will be used to determine your eligibility, qualifications, and quality ranking for this position. If you are determined to be ineligible or not qualified, your application will receive no further consideration.
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