Supervisory Chaplain

Supervisory Chaplains perform supervisory and senior clinical assignments for the VHA. They provide comprehensive religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons that are commensurate with the needs, desires, and voluntary consent of the Veteran, caregiver, or staff. They address the spiritual component of health and wellness in every patient care setting to ensure that pastoral care is fully integrated into all aspects of chaplain services.
Qualifications: BASIC REQUIREMENTS
Citizenship
Citizen of the United States (U.S.). Non-citizens may be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with 38 U.S.C. 7407(a).
English Language Proficiency
Chaplains must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. 7403(f).
Education
Applicants must possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
OR
Foreign Education
To be creditable, theological or related education completed outside the U.S. must be submitted to a current affiliate agency of the National Association of Credential Evaluation Services (NACES) listed at https://www.naces.org/members.
Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE)
Applicants must have completed four units of CPE from a CPE center that is accredited by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
Ecclesiastical Endorsement
In accordance with 38 C.F.R. 17.655, ecclesiastical endorsement is a condition of employment as a VA chaplain. An individual must possess and maintain a full and active ecclesiastical endorsement to be employed as a VA chaplain.

• Applicants must have an ecclesiastical endorsement, dated within the past 12 months.
• Ecclesiastical endorsements must be from the official national endorsing authority of the applicant's/employee's faith group or denomination.
• Ecclesiastical endorsement is a written official statement, by the official national endorsing body of the faith group or denomination, certifying that the applicant is in good standing with the applicant's faith group or denomination; and stating that the individual is, in the opinion of the endorsing body, qualified to perform the full range of ministry required in the VA pluralistic setting.
• Loss of endorsement will result in removal from the GS-0060 Chaplain series and may result in termination of employment.

Board Certification
Applicants must be a Board Certified Chaplain certified by the Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. (BCCI) or nationally recognized certification body that utilizes the BCCI Common Qualifications and Competencies for Professional Chaplaincy or a certifying organization that has a reciprocity agreement with BCCI .
Grade Determinations: Supervisory Chaplain, GS-13
Experience
At this level, the candidate must possess one year of creditable experience equivalent to the GS-12 grade level that is directly related to the position to be filled.
Assignment
The Supervisory Chaplain is responsible for oversight and management of all religious and spiritual care and provides counsel to facility leadership concerning religious expression. The Supervisory Chaplain supervises professional and non-professional nonsupervisory and supervisory staff at the GS-12 grade level or below and is responsible for chaplaincy practice including all administrative functions of the department, such as budget management, development of policy and clinical practice standards, development and oversight of service programming, establishing and ensuring performance and productivity metrics and outcomes, planning and organizational development, ensuring compliance with agency and accreditation requirements and setting the strategic direction of the service. The Supervisory Chaplain ensures the right of free exercise of religion and protects against proselytizing. The Supervisory Chaplain maintains chapel space and oversees distribution of space, inventory and resources needed for the provision of spiritual care, education and programming. The Supervisory Chaplain assesses spiritual and religious needs of the organization and ensures the religious needs of patients are met through partnerships with community religious leaders and organizations, and community, state and Federal agencies.
AND
Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities (KSAs)
In addition to the experience or education above, the candidate must demonstrate the following KSAs:

• Knowledge of administrative, personnel, and resource management and strategic planning for chaplaincy and chaplain pastoral education programs.
• Ability to provide the full range of supervisory duties, which include responsibility for assignment of work, performance evaluations, selection of staff and recommendation of awards, advancements and disciplinary actions.
• Skill in interpersonal relationships, including conflict resolution and ability to work collaboratively with managers from other departments.
• Ability to develop local policy, productivity and clinical practice standards.
• Ability to align chaplaincy services and programming with the strategic goals and objectives of the facility, Veterans Integrated Service Network and VHA.
• Ability to ensure compliance with chaplaincy practice, policy and accreditation standards across the continuum of health care.
• Skill in providing consultation to facility leadership, managers and other staff on all religious expression and spiritual care.

Preferred Experience: Supervisory Chaplain Experience
References: VA Handbook 5005/135, Part II, Appendix G67
Physical Requirements: See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Service.Education: IMPORTANT: A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education.
Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: http://www.ed.gov/about/offices/list/ous/international/usnei/us/edlite-visitus-forrecog.html.Employment Type: FULL_TIME