PUBLIC AFFAIRS SPECIALIST - TITLE 5 Job in Marietta, GA

Vacancy No. GA-12702243-AR-25-131 Department Army National Guard Units
Salary $78,189.00 to $101,641.00 Grade 11 to 11
Perm/Temp Temporary FT/PT Full-time
Open Date 2/28/2025 Close Date 3/21/2025
Job Link Apply Online Who may apply Public
Locations:
Marietta, GA


Summary

This position is for a Public Affairs Specialist, Position Description Number T5169P01 located in the Public Affairs Function of the State of Georgia Joint Force Headquarters, Georgia Army National Guard.

This is a full-time, Excepted Temporary Not to Exceed 3 Years position which DOES NOT requires Georgia Army National Guard Membership. Position is Indefinite however, may convert to permanent without further competition.

Area of Consideration: All United States Citizens.

Duties

As a Public Affairs Specialist, GS-1035-11, you will:


Assists the Public Affairs Officer in the formulation of long-range plans and policies to enhance public understanding, support and acceptance of Public Affairs programs and/or activities statewide.

Researches and develops informational materials and complete communication campaigns for release to audiences through electronic and newspaper media. Prepared materials explain or describe the mission of the NG, NG accomplishments, policies, programs or actions taken to ensure the NG's compliance with state and federal regulatory requirements. Written materials include news releases, display advertisements, fact sheets, feature stories, background statements, special reports, etc. Coordinates the analysis of response data on communication campaign effectiveness with programs managers.

Responds to media requests for information of both a routine and controversial nature. Prepares or assembles information kits, edits informational materials drafted by subordinate public affairs specialists or unit UPAR's, releases photographs and/or feature stories to the news media, coordinates media interviews with NG subject matter experts and arranges photographic and electronic media coverage of newsworthy NG events. Maintains close working relationships with officials of various civic, media and community groups and Department of Defense personnel, as well as state and national government officials outside the NG.

Provides training to UPAR's on PA program policies, practices and processes. Coordinates and evaluates the effectiveness of training and training materials and develops recommendations for program enhancement. Reviews all press releases, feature stories, background statements, special reports, etc., developed by UPARs, prior to their release to the media.

Creates new or adapts or modifies accepted communication campaign formats to reach a target audience with a specific message. The selection of a communication campaign format is based on an analysis of targeted audience demographics and message content. After an informational campaign has been implemented, solicited and unsolicited response data is gathered to assess campaign effectiveness in reaching the target audience. If the campaign's results do not meet expectations, the incumbent identifies issues of concern, develops alternatives and after discussing these with the appropriate administrative personal, implements the most appropriate option.

Perform other duties as assigned.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

  • You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job
  • Designated and/or random drug testing may be required
  • Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959
  • You may be required to serve a probationary period
  • Subject to background/security investigation
  • The incumbent will be required to obtain and maintain a secret security clearance.
  • Ability to establish effective professional working relationships with coworkers and customers, contributing to a cooperative working environment and successful accomplishment of the mission.
  • May require travel in military and/or commercial aircraft to perform temporary duty assignments.
  • May occasionally be required to work other than normal duty hours.
  • This position is designated as Essential Personnel and may be subject to duty in preparation for, or in response to, a state emergency or disaster declaration. .
  • Head of Agency requests to exceed 14 days in a calendar year must be approved in advance by the National Guard, Director of Manpower and Personnel (NGB-J1)

Qualifications

Each applicant must fully substantiate (in her/his own words) that they meet the requirements of the specialized experience listed below; otherwise, the applicant will be considered unqualified for this vacancy. DO NOT COPY THE VACANCY ANNOUNCEMENT OR THE POSITION DESCRIPTION. IF YOU DO THIS YOU WILL BE CONSIDERED UNQUALIFIED FOR THE VACANCY. Please ensure that you have included beginning and ending dates (month and year) for all jobs listed on your resume.

To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, MM/DD/YYYY.

Time-In-Grade Requirement: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-11 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-09. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. A non-award SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. Note: Time-In-Grade requirements also apply to former Federal employees applying for reinstatement as well as current employees applying for Veterans Employment Opportunities Act of 1998 (VEOA) appointment.

Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-09 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience is assisting the state's Public Affairs (PA) Officer at the strategic and operational level, with particular emphasis on developing segments of more complicated or sensitive communications campaigns and executing the National Guard Bureau's (NGB's) communication objectives.

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; religions; 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.

Education

Some federal jobs allow you to substitute your education for the required experience in order to qualify. If you decide to use education in lieu of experience you MUST provide transcripts to support your educational claims. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree
or
3 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree
or
LL.M, if related

Undergraduate Education: Successful completion of a full 4-year course of study in any field leading to a bachelor's degree, in an accredited college or university, meets the GS-5 level requirements for many positions covered by this standard. Others have individual occupational requirements that specify that applicants must, in general, (1) have specific course work that meets the requirements for a major in a particular field(s), or (2) have at least 24 semester hours of course work in the field(s) identified. Course work in fields closely related to those specified may be accepted if it clearly provides applicants with the background of knowledge and skills necessary for successful job performance. One year of full-time undergraduate study is defined as 30 semester hours or 45 quarter hours.

Superior Academic Achievement: The superior academic achievement provision is applicable to all occupations covered by this standard. See the "General Policies and Instructions" for specific guidance on applying the superior academic achievement provision.

Graduate Education: Education at the graduate level in an accredited college or university in the amounts shown in the table meets the requirements for positions at GS-7 through GS-11. Such education must demonstrate the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work.

One year of full-time graduate education is considered to be the number of credit hours that the school attended has determined to represent 1 year of full-time study. If that information cannot be obtained from the school, 18 semester hours should be considered as satisfying the 1 year of full-time study requirement.

Additional information

If you are a male applicant who was born after 12/31/1959 and are required to register under the Military Selective Service Act, the Defense Authorization Act of 1986 requires that you be registered or you are not eligible for appointment in this agency (https://www.sss.gov/RegVer/wfRegistration.aspx).

If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application.

Permanent Change of Station (PCS) allowances may be authorized, subject to the provisions of the Joint Travel Regulations and an agency determination that a PCS move is in the Government Interest.

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.

Once the announcement has closed, your resume and supporting documentation will be used to determine if you meet the qualifications listed on this announcement. If you are minimally qualified, your resume and supporting documentation will be compared to your responses on the assessment questionnaire to determine your level of experience. If you rate yourself higher than is supported by your application package, your responses may be adjusted and/or you may be excluded from consideration for this position. If you are found to be among the top qualified candidates, you will be referred to the selecting official for employment consideration.

Your qualifications will be evaluated on the following competencies (knowledge, skills, abilities and other characteristics):

Knowledge of interpersonal relations practices and the ability to apply statistical methods to the analysis of program data.

Ability to apply research skills to locate archived subject specific print and broadcast media materials and utilizes these as historical background material for developing current articles on the same subject or issue.

Ability to apply general and specializes statistical methods to the analysis of communication campaign surveys to assess communication campaign effectiveness in reaching the desired target audience.


Ability to apply inter-personal communication skills to the building of effective relationships with media representatives, community groups and other internal/external audiences, to insure open lines of communication between the wing's ANG PA office and potential audiences. FL 1-8 is not met.

Knowledge of a variety of PA programs, activities and functions and a mastery of communication principals, methods and techniques in order to resolve issues that are controversial with many and often divergent opinions which require deeper analysis to identify specific issues for discussion and the ability to communicate the ANG's position in a manner that is not offending or inflammatory.

Required Documents

To apply for this position, you must submit a complete Application Package which includes:

Your resume showing work schedule, hours worked per week, dates (including Month and Year, e.g., 02/2017, Feb 2017, etc.) of employment and duties performed.

The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please use this checklist to make sure you have included other documents required for your application, such as a copy of your transcript (if using education to qualify), SF-50's (current/former Federal employees), documentation to support Veterans Preference claims, or ICTAP/CTAP documentation (for displaced Federal employees). You will not be contacted for additional information.
DD-214
Other
Other Veterans Document
Resume
SF-15
SF-50
Transcript

RESUME REMINDER- Your resume must include the following information for each job listed: Job title Duties (be as detailed as possible) Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008) Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week) Series and Grade, if applicable, for all Federal positions you have held. Be sure that your resume clearly supports your responses to all of the questions in the assessment by addressing your work experience in detail. Recommended: Even though we do not require a specific resume format, your resume must be clear so that we are able to fully evaluate your qualifications. To ensure you receive appropriate consideration, please list the duties you performed under each individual job title. If we are unable to match your experiences with the positions held, you may lose consideration for this vacancy. We cannot make assumptions regarding your qualifications.

A non-award SF-50: Notification of Personnel Action is required for all current and former Federal employees. The SF-50(s) MUST reflect the highest grade and step held in Federal Service that demonstrates one year time in grade AND your most recent non-award SF-50.

Veterans' Preference: When applying for Federal Jobs, eligible Veterans should claim preference for 5pt (TP), 10pt (CP/CPS/XP), or for Sole Survivor Preference (SSP) in the questionnaire. You must provide a legible copy of your DD214(s) (Member 4 or Service 2 copies) which shows dates and character of service (honorable, general, etc.). If you are currently serving on active duty and expect to be released or discharged within 120 days you must submit documentation related to your active duty service which reflects the dates of service, character of service (honorable, general, etc.), and dates of impending separation. Additionally, disabled veterans and others eligible for 10-point preference (such as widows or mothers of eligible Veterans) must also submit an SF-15 "Application for 10 Point Veteran Preference" with required proof as stated on the form. Documentation is required to award preference. For more information on Veterans' Preference, please visit http://www.fedshirevets.gov/job/vetpref/index.aspx.

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 application/Occupational Questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. To view the Occupational Questionnaire, click the following link:

A complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (EST) on the closing date of the announcement 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.

Follow the prompts to select your resume 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.

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/.

Agency contact information

David Drew
Address
GA JFHQ
1000 Halsey Avenue Bldg 447
Marietta, GA 30061
US

Next steps

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. Your application will be evaluated by the Human Resources Office to determine your eligibility for the position. After the evaluation is complete, you will receive another notification regarding the status of your application.


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