Equal Opportunity Specialist

Duties

Duties described below are at the highest grade advertised. Duties assigned at lower grade levels will be of more limited scope, performed with less independence and limited complexity; duties will be commensurate with the grade of selected employee.
Conducts pre-award reviews of NASA grantees to assist the Agency in better ensuring the recipients of NASA grants are in compliance with Equal Opportunity (EO) requirements under the grant-related civil right laws prior to receiving grant awards.
Drafts, edits, or reviews and comments on compliance review plans and compliance review reports.
Leads interviews of students, patrons, faculty, staff and senior administrators of the institutions to which NASA provides funding to identify/clarify the scope and nature of the institutions’ compliance with legal requirements.
Conducts compliance reviews that involve unique combinations of facts, conditions, and issues being investigated for the first time, and analyzes voluminous information that must be obtained from many points across the nation.
Oversees compliance-related projects that often proceed in multiple phases and are conducted by teams that memorialize findings and recommendations in written reports.
Identifies and addresses issues that are fundamental to the organization’s civil rights and/or EO policies and operating principles, which may be highly-controversial.
Monitors EO complaints to help ensure the program is functioning properly and operating in a timely fashion to address concerns.
Fosters a culture of engagement, diversity, inclusiveness, excellence and innovation. Champions NASA's commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility to create an environment that promotes a commitment to safety, integrity and teamwork.

Requirements

Conditions of Employment

This position is open to U.S. citizens, nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.
Current Federal employees must meet qualifications, time in grade, and 90 days after competitive appointment requirements by the closing date of the announcement.
Financial Disclosure, Drug Testing, Bargaining Unit and/or the Travel Requirements for this position may differ and be required based on the duty location/NASA Center requirements.
Position subject to pre-employment background investigation or higher-level clearance. Investigation/Clearance may differ and be required based on the duty location/NASA Center requirements.
Selected applicant(s) must be assigned to a duty location listed on the announcement.
This position may require a one-year probationary period.

Qualifications

Specialized experience is experience that has equipped you with the particular ability, skill, and knowledge to successfully perform the duties of this position and is typically in or related to this line of work.

To qualify for GS-11, you must have:
a) One year of directly related specialized experience equivalent to the GS-09 level:

Assisting with investigating Equal Opportunity or civil rights discrimination in federally funded programs or activities;
Gathering information to assist with fact finding for investigations that assess compliance with an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights programs (e.g., Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or Age Discrimination Act of 1975);
Assisting with the evaluation of an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights program's operation or functionality.

OR
b) Completed all requirements for a doctoral degree (i.e., Ph.D. or equivalent) in an appropriate field
OR
c) Completed 3 full academic years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. degree or equivalent doctoral degree in an appropriate field
OR
d) LL.M., if related
OR
e) Have an equivalent combination of experience and graduate study as discussed in a), b), c) and d) above

To qualify for GS-12, you must have one year of directly related specialized experience equivalent to the GS-11 level:

Analyzing Equal Opportunity or civil rights discrimination in federally funded programs or activities and proposing resolutions;
Performing fact finding for investigations that assess compliance with an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights programs (e.g., Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or Age Discrimination Act of 1975);
Assessing an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights programs and recommending improvements to training plans and program processes.

To qualify for GS-13, you must have one year of directly related specialized experience equivalent to the GS-12 level:

Investigating Equal Opportunity or civil rights discrimination in federally funded programs or activities and drafting determinations/decision documents for case resolution;
Conducting fact finding, drafting determinations, and seeking resolutions for investigations that assess an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights programs (e.g., Title IX of the Education Amendments Act of 1972, Title VI of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 , Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 or Age Discrimination Act of 1975);
Inspecting and evaluating an organization's equal opportunity or civil rights program to determine compliance.

Your resume must include a clear and detailed narrative description, in your own words, of how you meet the required specialized experience. Experience statements copied from a position description, vacancy announcement or other reference material constitutes plagiarism and may result in disqualification and losing consideration for the job. NASA prohibits the use of artificial intelligence (AI) or AI-assisted tool in drafting application and assessment responses. Please visit https://www.nasa.gov/careers/how-to-apply/#Artificial-Intelligence to review NASA's guidance on the use of AI tools during the application process.

Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Additional information

Additional selections may be made for similar positions across NASA within the local commuting area(s) of the location(s) identified in this announcement. By applying, you agree to have your application shared with interested selecting official(s) within NASA. CTAP/ICTAP will be cleared for any additional selection from this announcement.

If you are applying for a GS-12 or higher level and are a current federal employee, you must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible for this position. To be eligible, you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks in a position no more than 1 grade lower than the advertised position. (Please submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. If your eligibility for both merit promotion and/or time-in-grade cannot be determined, your application will be rated ineligible.)
Note: Time-in-grade requirements also apply to applicants who have held a non-temporary, competitive service GS position in the past year.

If you are applying at the GS-11 level and are a current federal employee, you must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible for this position. To be eligible, you must have completed a minimum of 52 weeks in a position no more than 2 grades lower than the advertised position. (Please submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. If your eligibility for both merit promotion and/or time-in-grade cannot be determined, your application will be rated ineligible.)
Note: Time-in-grade requirements also apply to applicants who have held a non-temporary, competitive service GS position in the past year.

If you have special priority selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP), you must:
- Indicate your eligibility when applying for a position. The questionnaire asks you to identify your ICTAP/CTAP eligibility.
- Be well qualified for this position to receive consideration. Candidates rated in the 'Best Qualified' category are considered well-qualified. Please see 'How You Will Be Evaluated' for more information.
- Submit proof that you meet the requirements for CTAP/ICTAP as indicated in 'Required Documents'

For additional information about CTAP/ICTAP eligibility, click here - https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/#ictap.

Qualified NASA term employees who have term conversion eligibility (Term Appointments | NASA) under the NASA Flexibility Act of 2004 will be referred and considered equally with other NASA permanent employees under internal competitive placement procedures.

Depending on position assignment, position may or may not be in a bargaining unit. To learn more about bargaining units at NASA please click here NASA Unions (Bargaining Units) | NASA.

Benefits
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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 for this position based on how well you meet the qualifications and eligibility requirements listed in this vacancy announcement. To determine your qualifications and referral status, we may review your resume and supporting documentation and compare it against your responses to the vacancy questionnaire. Overstating your qualifications and/or experience in your application materials or application questionnaire may result in your removal from consideration.

You will be assessed on the following competencies:

Compliance
Compliance Inspection
Creative Thinking
Equal Opportunity Management
Flexibility
Inspection, Investigation, and Compliance
Legal, Government, and Jurisprudence
Writing

NASA considers 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.

Under NASA's quality grouping process, applicants will be assessed on the position competencies and placed in one of three groups identified and defined below:

Best Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate a superior level of all evaluation criteria.
Highly Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate a satisfactory level of the evaluation criteria.
Qualified Group - Applicants who demonstrate the basic qualifications, with general knowledge, skills, and abilities.

Candidates eligible for ICTAP/CTAP, reemployment priority or priority consideration will be referred before other candidates, as necessary. If no such candidates apply or are eligible to be referred, the following candidates will be sent to the hiring official for employment consideration:

Best Qualified merit promotion candidates. Highly Qualified merit promotion candidates may also be referred, if additional candidates are needed.
Qualified candidates eligible for consideration under Schedule A or VRA in accordance with veterans' preference rules, as applicable.
Qualified candidates that are eligible for special hiring authorities or non-competitive hiring authorities.

NASA will not ask you to disclose criminal history record information during the application process or before we make a conditional/tentative offer of employment. If you apply for this position and are selected, NASA will conduct a suitability/security background investigation after you accept a tentative job offer. If you feel you are asked to disclose your criminal history before you accept a tentative offer and wish to file a complaint within 30 days, please contact: Agency-FCCJ@NASA.gov.