Supervisory Victim Advocate Counselor

This Supervisory Victim Advocate Counselor provides professional services to victims and witnesses of crime within the criminal justice system in the fields of
sociology, psychology, and criminology.

If selected for this position, you will serve as a Supervisory Victim Advocate Counselor in the Victim Witness Division (VWD) of the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia (USAODC).

Typical work assignments will include:

• Plans and assigns work accomplished by subordinates based on priorities; sets and adjusts short-term priorities; and prepares schedules for completion of work.
• Provides professional services and relevant information to victims and witnesses regarding dynamics of victimization, social services resources, and the criminal justice process.
• Directs or performs victim-witness program operations regarding Superior Court and District Court general crime, domestic violence, or special victims activities.
• Serves as lead Forensic Interviewer (FI) and assign advocacy/forensic interview cases to advocates within the unit; maintain FI policies, procedures, and practice flow; manage FI tracking logs and annual end-of-year reports.
• Enhances program visibility and growth through planning and coordination; work directly with community outreach to foster community engagement; organizes awards ceremonies and delegate responsibilities as needed.

Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Conditions of employment

• You must be a United States Citizen or National to apply for this position.
• Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
• Selective Service: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see http://www.sss.gov/).
• All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
• Relocation expenses will not be paid
• If selected, you will be subject to the satisfactory completion of a one year supervisory or managerial probationary period unless this requirement has been met previously.
• If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application.
• Must provide resume and supporting documents (See required documents).
• Time-in-Grade: Current or former Federal employees applying under merit promotion considerations must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements for consideration within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement.
• You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position.
• As needed, additional selections may be made using this announcement.

Qualifications

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required specialized experience for the respective grade level in which you are applying:

To qualify at the GS-13 level, you must possess:

Specialized Experience: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level in the Federal Service (obtained in either the public or private sectors) performing at least (3) out of (4) of the following duties:

1. Providing victim-advocacy services, including social-service referrals, court accompaniment, safety planning, victim-compensation assistance, or information about victims' rights and the criminal justice process;
2. Interviewing victims or witnesses, assessing needs, providing crisis intervention, or developing service plans;
3. Coordinating with legal, law enforcement, social-service, or advocacy organizations to address victim needs;
4. Directing victim-services operations and supervising staff by assigning work, evaluating performance, or providing guidance and training.

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR 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.

If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here.

TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-12 is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-13 level.

• You must submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. No award SF-50 will be accepted; recommended SF-50s include promotions and step increases (within grade increases).

All applicants will be reviewed to ensure they meet minimum qualification and eligibility requirements before carrying out the rating and ranking process. Applicants will not be further considered who will not meet within 30 days after the closing date of the vacancy announcement all qualification and eligibility requirements.