Fire Protection Specialist (Fire Marshall) Job

Vacancy No. 25-12623983-N010900-MP Department National Park Service
Salary $103,409.00 to $134,435.00 Grade 13 to 13
Perm/Temp Permanent FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 11/26/2024 Close Date 12/10/2024
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Boston, MALowell, MAPhiladelphia, PA


Summary

One position is being filled at this time at one of the following locations (location to be determined at time of selection):

  • Boston, MA
  • Lowell, MA
  • Philadelphia, PA

Incumbent serves as the Regional Fire Protection Specialist (Fire Marshal) within a regional structural fire program of the National Park Service (NPS).

In order to be considered for any duty location, ensure desired locations are selected. Applicants will not be considered for locations not selected.

This job is open to

Clarification from the agency

This announcement is open to current and former Federal career/career-conditional employees in the competitive service, Reinstatement eligibles, Eligible Veterans (VEOA and/or 30% or more disabled Veterans), CTAP & ICTAP eligibles, Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) eligibles, Military Spouses, Former Public Land Corps (PLC), individuals with disabilities (Schedule A), National Service (Peace Corps and VISTA), and special authorities.

Duties

  • Assuring matters pertaining to structure fire and life safety procedures, processes and equipment in every structure within the region is in compliance with NFPA (National Fire Protection Association) to assure protection.
  • Identifies, initiates and coordinates planning, programming and the review of structural fire needs for the entire region, which encompasses 90 units, in addition to the Regional Office.
  • Ensures the implementation of all agreements are consistent with National Park Service legislation, regulations and policies.
  • Frequently works closely with and consults directly with design and engineering firms, historic architects, licensed fire protection engineers, mechanical, electrical and structural engineers in the industry.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • U.S. Citizenship required.
  • Males born after 12/31/1959 must be registered for Selective Service or exempt.
  • Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication of background investigation and/or fingerprint check.
  • Per Public Law 104-134 all Federal employees are required to have federal payments made by direct deposit to their financial institution.
  • Must be 18 years of age at time of close date of announcement.
  • Must pass the Work Capacity Test for certain Interagency Fire Program Management or Fire Program Management positions.
  • This is a Drug Test Designated Position. You will be required to submit to a drug test and receive a negative drug test result prior to appointment. In addition, this position is subject to random testing for illegal drug use.
  • Prior primary/rigorous structure firefighting experience is required.
  • Willing to live/work in remote locations (volatile/unpredictable).
  • You will be required to operate a government motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required.
  • You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service fire uniform standards.
  • 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.
  • Incumbent will be required to complete training and obtain/maintain a government charge card with travel and/or purchase authority.
  • Prior to appointment, you must be determined physically fit by an authorized government physician to perform strenuous and physically demanding duties; and pass a medical examination given by an authorized government physician.
  • You will also be required to complete periodic medical examinations throughout employment.
  • Subject to frequent extended travel up to 14 nights a month particularly during fire season, and you must obtain a government charge card for travel.
  • This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the eligibility and qualifications requirements as defined below by the closing date of the announcement. For more information on the qualifications for this position, visit the Office of Personnel Management's General Schedule Qualification Standards.

Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. Your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year to month/year), and must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If an applicant's resume is incomplete a rating of "ineligible" will be applied and no consideration for employment will be granted.

In order to be considered for this position, copies of any required certifications MUST be attached to you application package. To receive consideration for this position, you must provide updated required documents and meet all qualification and Time-In-Grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement.

Basic Qualification Requirements:

For the GS-13 level:
Applicants must have at least one year of specialized work experience in a related field at the GS-12 or equivalent. Examples of specialized experience are: Directed and supervised a structural fire management program; Directed, reviewed and analyzed structural fire management plans; Applied an extensive knowledge of building construction, International and National Fire Codes, directives, and regulations; Performed as a leader of a group of structural fire professionals in achieving program goals and requirements; Lead small groups of structural fire professionals in achieving program goals and requirements; Provided professional guidance in a non-supervisory role; Applied a high degree of tact and diplomacy in dealing with a wide variety of individuals to include senior executive personnel, park leadership, engineers, and skilled tradesmen; Exercised a firmness in obtaining cooperation in the corrections of existing or potential fire hazards.

In addition to the requirements described above, the following certifications and experience is required.

SELECTIVE PLACEMENT FACTORS:

  • Successful completion and have currency in the following from the International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC) or National Board on Fire Service Professional Qualifications (NPQS/Pro Board):
    • Fire Instructor I, AND
    • Fire Inspector III, AND
    • Hazmat Awareness, AND
    • Plans Examiner AND
    • Must be able to obtain a Fire Investigator IFSAC or NPQS/Pro Board certification within 1 year of employment.
    • Candidates must possess prior structural firefighting experience. Experience that may be credited: volunteer firefighter, paid call firefighter, and/or structural firefighter with the Federal government or in an equivalent position outside the Federal government; suppressing fires that occur within buildings, ships, vehicles, airstrips and aircrafts, and other non-wildland firefighting. You must clearly demonstrate this experience in your resume, including the months, days and hours per week at which the work was performed in order to be considered.

Structural Fire: The Department of the Interior defines structural firefighting experience as any firefighting experience except wildland firefighting. Structural experience may be gained though work in suppressing fires such as those in buildings, ships, vehicles, airstrips and aircraft, and other non-wildland firefighting. This experience may be gained by serving in a structural firefighting position within the federal government or in an equivalent position outside the Federal government. Periods of structural firefighting gained as a volunteer or paid call firefighter can also be credited. In some instances, candidates may be hired in a dual wildland and structural firefighting role. Candidates must meet the qualifications required for either the wildland or structural fire function.

Secondary Firefighter Retirement Coverage - Applicants for this secondary administrative fire fighter position under the provisions of 5 U.S.C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U.S.C. 8412 (d), must possess knowledge of the principles, methods, and techniques of wildland firefighting as demonstrated by direct wildland firefighting experience. In order to receive credit, you must provide a written description of your experience in wildland firefighting. Education without hands-on wildland firefighting experience does not meet this requirement. Periods of wildland firefighting experience, gained through militia and rural fire departments, can also be credited. Wildland fire is defined as any non-structure fire that occurs in the wildland. Two distinct types of wildland fire have been defined and include wildfire and prescribed fires as follows: Wildfire: Unplanned ignitions or prescribed fires that are declared wildfires. Prescribed Fires: Planned ignitions. This description includes only fireline experience on a Prescribed Fire; it does not include experience in the planning stages. Prescribed fire experience must be supplemented by fire suppression experience in order to be creditable as previous wildland firefighting experience.

This is a secondary-administrative firefighter position under the special retirement provisions of 5 U.S. C. 8336 (c) (CSRS) and 5 U. S. C. 8412 (d) (FERS). PLEASE NOTE: Applicants may meet qualification requirements but may not be eligible for special retirement coverage. If such an applicant is selected, they will be placed in the regular retirement system. FERS TRANSITION REQUIREMENT: To be eligible for Secondary retirement coverage under FERS, an employee must: 1) transfer directly (without a break in service exceeding 3 days) from a primary position to a secondary position, AND 2) complete 3 years of service in a primary rigorous position including any such service during which no FERS deductions were withheld, AND 3) must be continuously employed in a secondary position(s) since moving from a primary rigorous position, except for any break in employment from a secondary position that began with involuntary separation (not for cause). It is the responsibility of the applicant to ensure this office has enough information to determine your special retirement status to ensure you do not lose benefits (normally through submission of your work history or other documentation that demonstrates work history of approved covered positions). You must let this office know if you are in a Primary coverage position.

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.

Education

There is no substitution of education for experience at the grade level(s) of this announcement. For more information regarding this, please visit OPM Qualification Standards - 0081.

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.

Physical Demands: The work of this position is mostly sedentary but may require periods of high intensity physical exertion while in the field. All Risk Emergency Incident Management Team assignments, fire inspections, program audits, fire suppression classes, and other field assignments may require an extensive amount of walking, bending, hiking, carrying, and climbing. The incumbent is expected to maintain incident qualifications to participate in program activities that require high intensity arduous work and exposure to live fire conditions in a hazardous setting.

Working Conditions: Much of the work is performed in an office setting that is adequately lighted, heated, and ventilated. However, the position has the potential for exposure to potentially dangerous situations while in the field. The incumbent is expected to be able to teach components of any one of the NPS training classes for structural fire. While on a training or fire location, the work environment may involve hazardous environmental conditions such as exposure to fire, heat, chemicals, and loud noise for extended periods of time. The work may require the use of a self-contained breathing apparatus. Travel may be required to the Washington office, regional offices, and field areas for meetings, training, on-site inspections, and policy implementation.

Benefits

A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

Review our benefits

Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.

How You Will Be Evaluated

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

You will be evaluated based on how well you meet the qualifications listed in this vacancy announcement. Your qualifications will be evaluated based on your application materials (e.g., resume, supporting documents), the responses you provide on the application questionnaire, and the result of the additional assessments required for this position. A review of your resume and supporting documentation will be made and compared against your responses to the Assessment Questionnaire to determine if you are qualified for this job. If your resume is incomplete or does not support the responses provided in the Assessment Questionnaire, or if you fail to submit all required documentation, you will be rated 'ineligible', 'not qualified', or your score will be adjusted accordingly. If a determination is made that you have inflated your qualifications or experience, you can lose consideration for this position. Please follow all instructions carefully; errors or omissions can affect your rating.

Candidates who apply under Competitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are highly qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Best qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

Candidates who apply under Noncompetitive Merit Promotion procedures will undergo a quality review to determine if they are minimally qualified based on the content of their resume and their responses to the questionnaire. Qualified candidates will be referred if all required supporting documentation has been provided.

You will be evaluated on the following competencies:

  • Fire Management
  • Influencing/Negotiating
  • Leadership
  • Technical Competence
  • Writing

In order to be considered for this position, you must complete all required steps in the process. In addition to the application and application questionnaire, this position requires successful completion of additional assessments, including a Subject Matter Expert (SME) resume review. These assessments measure the critical competencies listed above that are required to successfully perform the job.

Please submit 1) a copy of your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation and 2) a list of any awards (e.g. superior performance awards, special act or achievement awards, quality step increase, etc.) you received in the last 5 years. Any performance appraisal/evaluation and award documentation you provide will be forwarded to the selecting official. The selecting official will review this documentation and give it due weight consideration during the overall selection process.

If you do not have your most recent performance appraisal/evaluation, please submit a statement as to why it is not available. Please indicate if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level.

Required Documents

The following documents are required and must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 12/10/2024:

  1. Resume which includes a list of all significant jobs held and duties performed, dates specified in month and year format, and the resume must reflect either full-time or 40 hours per week. If a part-time work schedule is reflected, the hours must be annotated to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience. If military or civilian, please include your rank and/or grade.
  2. Complete All Required Assessments.
  3. Merit Promotion Eligibility Documentation such as:
    • Federal employees must submit a copy of their latest SF-50 "Notification of Personnel Action" that reflects career or career-conditional tenure (such as the initial hire, promotion, or reassignment) showing position title, series, grade and tenure (please do not submit an Award SF-50) and, if different, an SF-50 showing highest permanent grade ever held. Time in grade will be determined by reviewing your resume and required SF-50's.
    • If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess the one-year time-in-grade, as required by this announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade, such as a Within Grade Increase.
    • Veterans Preference Documentation (e.g. DD-214, SF-15 (with required documentation), VA Letter as appropriate)
    • Documentation for the Land Management Workforce Flexibility Act (LMWFA) eligibility, which includes ALL Appointment AND Termination SF-50s for EACH appointment as well as ALL performance evaluations, for each qualifying period of temporary employment claimed, or a statement why a performance appraisal is missing for any timeframe.
  4. Other Supporting Documents, if applicable, such as:
    • Veterans Preference Documentation:
      • If you are a Discharged, Non-Disabled Veteran, you must submit a copy of your DD-214 showing character of discharge (Member 4 copy), or other Documentation of Service and Separation under Honorable Conditions, as listed on the SF15. If you don't have your DD-214, you may request it after discharge from the National Archives.
      • If you are a veteran within 120 days of discharge, you must submit signed documentation from the Armed Forces certifying: 1) your expected release/retirement from active duty, 2) under honorable conditions, 3) your pay grade/rank/rate at time of discharge, 4) dates of active duty service, 5) any campaign or expeditionary medals received, & 6) dated within 120 days of your separation.
      • If you are a Disabled Veteran, Purple Heart Recipient, or Mother or Spouse of a Disabled or Deceased Veteran, you must submit all additional proof required by the SF15, and if applicable, a completed SF15. You may request a copy of your Department of Veterans Affairs letter from www.ebenefits.va.gov or call 1-800-827-1000 to establish proof of disability.
    • Performance Appraisals and Awards:
      • All applicants must submit their most recent performance appraisal showing the official rating of record and signed by a supervisor. If submitting a performance appraisal not dated within the last18 months, OR
      • A statement as to why it is the most recent must be submitted. If no performance appraisal is available, applicants must submit a statement as to why it is not available (including if any prior performance appraisals/evaluations were at an acceptable level).
  5. International Fire Service Accreditation Congress (IFSAC) or National Board on Fire Service Professional Qualifications (NPQS/Pro Board) certifications.
  6. Documentation for Interagency/Career Transition Assistance Plan consideration if you are a displaced Federal employee within the local commuting area. You must include: 1) Proof you are a displaced Federal employee, e.g., RIF Separation Notice, Notice of Proposed Removal, etc.; 2) SF-50s (Notifications of Personnel Action) showing career/conditional tenure competitive status, promotion potential and duty location; and 3) your most recent performance appraisal. To exercise selection priority, displaced or surplus Federal employees must be rated well-qualified or above 85 on the rating criteria for this position.
  7. Noncompetitive or Special Hiring Authority. Applicants who are eligible to be considered based on a Noncompetitive or Special Hiring Authority (i.e. Schedule A, Peace Corps, AmeriCorp Vista, former PLC member, certain Military Spouses, 30% or More Disabled Veterans, etc.) must submit appropriate documentation to verify your eligibility.

Do not submit photographs with your application package. Documents with photographs may not be seen by hiring officials - you must remove your image from any badges, licenses, etc.
Do not upload Adobe portfolio documents. Adobe portfolio documents are not viewable by our agency's staffing offices.

How to Apply

To apply for this position: You must complete the occupational questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To receive consideration, the complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on 12/10/2024. You must provide documentation to support your claim for each eligibility selected. Please review the required documentation listed in the eligibilities language to ensure you submit the appropriate information. Note: You will only be marked eligible for those eligibilities that you selected and provided the appropriate supporting documentation.

  1. Select Apply. If you are not logged in, you will be prompted to login or create an account.
  2. Start the Application Process by selecting "Start Application."
  3. Select or add the resume you want to use for this application. Click here on how to build a resume in USAJOBS.
  4. Select documents you want included in this application.
  5. Review package to acknowledge your documents were reviewed.
  6. Select if you want to include your demographic information.
  7. After reading and certifying the application is true and submitted in good faith, select "Continue to Agency Site."
  8. Follow onscreen prompts and instructions to complete your application.
  9. Add the supporting documents by indexing your documents with the dropdown.
    • Upload any missing required documents or optional documents.
  10. Review and Submit Application.
  11. While logged in, you can check the status of your application by selecting "+" next to the job title for this position.
  12. You can review or revise your application at any point during the open period of the announcement.
    • To update an application, you should log into your USAJOBS account and select "+" next to the job title for this position. Select "Update Application" for this job.
    • Note: When you click Update Application, you will be prompted to re-select your documents from USAJOBS. Documents submitted with the first application will no longer be associated with the applicant record. It is important that you select all documents you want to use in the re-application.
  13. We do not accept an emailed or hard copy application packages.
  14. Failure to submit any of the above mentioned required documents will result in loss of consideration due to an incomplete application package. It is your responsibility to ensure all required documents have been submitted

Agency contact information

Lisa Salazar
Address
North East Fire and Aviation-SPARK
15 State Street
Boston, MA 02109
US
Learn more about this agency

Next steps

Once the Occupational Questionnaire is received you will receive acknowledgement that your submission was successful. If you are among the qualified candidates, your name will be referred to the hiring official, and you may be contacted directly for a possible interview. You will be notified of the status of your Application Package at the time candidates are referred for consideration, and when the selection process is complete.


Note: We cannot accept applications on behalf of Federal Agencies. Application instructions are listed within the Job Description.