Lead Peer Specialist

JobSummary

This Peer Specialist position may only be filled with a Veteran that meets statutory requirements that are detailed in the qualifications section. This Lead Peer Specialist position is in Mental Health services at the VA Providence Healthcare Systems, located at the Providence location.

LowGrade

10

HighGrade

10

PromotionPotential

None

SubAgencyName

VA Providence Healthcare System

OrganizationCodes

VA/VATA

Relocation

False

HiringPath

• fed-transition
• overseas
• fed-competitive
• fed-excepted
• disability
• fed-internal-search
• land
• mspouse
• peace
• public
• vet

MCOTags

TotalOpenings

1

AgencyMarketingStatement

OUR MISSION: To fulfill President Lincoln's promise "To care for those who have served in our nation's military and for their families, caregivers, and survivors" - by serving and honoring the men and women who are America's Veterans. How would you like to become a part of a team providing compassionate whole health care to Veterans? The VA has adopted Core Values and Characteristics that apply universally across the Department. The five Core Values define "who we are," our culture, and how we care for Veterans, their families and other beneficiaries. The Values are Integrity, Commitment, Advocacy, Respect and Excellence ("I CARE"). As a VA professional, your opportunities are endless. With many openings in the multiple functions of VA, you will have a wide range of opportunities and leadership positions at your fingertips. Not only is it the largest, most technologically advanced integrated health care system in the Nation, but we also provide many other services to Veterans through the Benefits Administration and National Cemeteries. VA professionals feel good about their careers and their ability to balance work and home life. VA offers generous paid time off and a variety of predictable and flexible scheduling opportunities. For more information on the Department of Veterans Affairs, go to http://www.vacareers.va.gov/

TravelCode

5

ApplyOnlineUrl

https://apply.usastaffing.gov/Application/Apply

DetailStatusUrl

https://apply.usastaffing.gov/Application/ApplicationStatus

MajorDuties

• The position leads a team comprised of Peer Specialists and may lead Without Compensation (WOC) peer support employees, within a common supervisory structure, to provide services, integrate processes, and meet goals of peer support service programming at the facility. As the leader of a team of peer support staff, the position facilitates, coordinates, coaches, and problem solve with the members of the peer support staff team. The position also acts as the recognized liaison to and from the peer support staff team and the supervisor. The work of the position enables the peer support provider team as a whole to deliver improved quality, quantity, and timely services to Veterans. Duties include, but not limited to the following: Ensures that the organization's strategic plan, mission, vision, and values are communicated to the peer support staff they lead and integrated into the team's strategies, goals, objectives, work plans, products, and services. Articulates and communicates to the peer support staff they lead the assignments, projects, problems to be solved, actionable events, milestones, and/or program issues under review as well as the deadlines and time frames for completion. The position communicates the supervisor's instructions to the team. Coaches the peer support staff they lead in the selection and application of appropriate problem-solving methods and techniques, provides advice on work methods, practices and procedures, and assists the team and/or individual members in identifying the parameters of viable solutions. Maintains awareness of the status and progress of peer support staff's work and makes day-to-day adjustments to ensure their work aligns with program goals and processes. Leads the team in identifying, distributing, and balancing workload and tasks in accordance with established workflow, skill level and/or occupational specialization; makes adjustments to accomplish the workload in accordance with established priorities to ensure timely accomplishment of assigned team tasks; and ensures that each team member has an integral role in developing the final team products and services. Identifies training needs and assists in the development of training for peer specialists and Veterans seeking to become peer specialists. Serves as a coach, facilitator and/or negotiator in coordinating team initiatives and in consensus building activities among team members. Maintains working knowledge of treatments and services available for the purpose of appropriate referrals. Represents the team in dealings with the supervisor for the purpose of obtaining resources (e.g., computer hardware and software, use of overtime or compensatory time), and securing needed information or decisions from the supervisor on major work problems and issues that arise. Participates in the service, training, consultation, and other professional activities of VA health care services and functions as a fully vested member of the multidisciplinary team. Uses personal recovery experiences to model coping techniques and recovery tools to coach Veterans on relevant skills needed for self-management of their health condition(s) and pursuit of their personal wellness. Observes behaviors that might indicate difficulty adapting or responding to treatment (e.g., missed assessment appointments, failure to attend or maintain abstinence, risk to self or others, disruptive behavior), completes appropriate documentation, and reports concerns to the treatment team in a timely manner. Uses ongoing individual and group meetings to teach Veterans how to identify and combat negative self-talk and overcome fears by providing a forum that allows Veteran to share their experiences. As necessary, handles crisis interventions for Veterans and addresses other emergent situations without the benefit of specific instructions. Informs Veterans about VA and community supports and resources, including how to effectively utilize them in the recovery and wellness process. Maintains a working knowledge of current trends and developments in holistic approaches in wellness and recovery by reading books, journals, and other relevant materials. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday; 8:00am to 4:30pm Telework: This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Position Description/PD#: Lead Peer Specialist/PD99338S Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Education

There is no educational substitution at this grade level. Notifications: Interchange Agreements with Other Merit System: Employees who occupy medical or medical-related positions and were appointed under 38 U.S.C. 4701(1) or (3) [formerly 38 U.S.C. 4104 (1) and (3)] must be serving in a full-time position without time limit and have served continuously for at least one year in this other merit system to be eligible to convert to the Title 5 System. Some exceptions to this rule may apply if you have previously acquired tenure under a Title 5 appointment. This position is covered by locality-based comparability pay. Current and former Federal employees must submit copies of their most recent SF-50, (Notice of Personnel Action). The SF-50 must identify the position title, series, grade, step, tenure and type of service (Competitive or Excepted). In some cases, more than one SF-50 may be required to show a higher grade previously held. Veterans' preference does not apply for internal or other current permanent Federal agency employees.

Requirements

You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job You must have a full, current, and unrestricted peer specialist certification to meet this qualification requirement for employment in VHA as a peer specialist. You must be a Veteran (See Statutory Requirements below) Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements (https://www.uscis.gov/i-9-central/form-i-9-acceptable-documents). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period or 2-year trial period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may consider: your performance and conduct; the needs and interests of the agency; whether your continued employment would advance organizational goals of the agency or the Government; and whether your continued employment would advance the efficiency of the Federal service. Upon completion of your probationary period or trial period, your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Evaluations

IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE WILL NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR EXPERIENCE. Narrative responses are not required at this time. If you are referred for consideration, you may be asked to submit additional job related information, which may include, but not limited to; responses to the knowledge, skills and abilities; completion of a work sample, and/or contact for an interview. Your resume and/or supporting documentation will be verified. Please follow all instructions carefully. Errors or omissions may affect your rating or consideration for employment. The Department of Veterans Affairs performs pre-employment reference checks as an assessment method used in the hiring process to verify information provided by a candidate (e.g., on resume or during interview or hiring process); gain additional knowledge regarding a candidate's abilities; and assist a hiring manager with making a final selection for a position. For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members.

HowToApply

All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the questionnaire and submit the documentation specified in the Required Documents section below. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 04/10/2026 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12924889. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USA JOBS account or log in to your existing account. Follow the prompts to select your USA JOBS resume and/or other supporting documents and complete the occupational questionnaire. Click Submit My Answers to submit your application package. NOTE: It is your responsibility to ensure your responses and appropriate documentation is submitted prior to the closing date. Beginning September 27, 2025, Federal agencies will only accept resumes up to two pages in length to comply with the Merit Hiring Plan. Resumes longer than two pages will result in ineligibility for further consideration for the position. USAJOBS will not allow you to upload or build resumes longer than two pages, and you will need to update the resumes in your profile before applying for a job. Resumes should include information relevant to the knowledge, skills, abilities, and competencies of the position to which you are applying. VA is unable to make assumptions about qualifications if not clearly listed. Resumes must be legible so they can be reviewed for eligibility, minimum qualifications and other position requirements listed in the job announcement. Your resume must be 5MB or less. We recommend saving and uploading your resume as a PDF to maintain formatting and number of pages. We also accept GIF, JPG, JPEG, PNG, RTF, TXT, PDF, ODT or Word (DOC or DOCX). We do not accept PDF portfolio files. We recommend using a sans-serif font size like Lato, if available. Other widely available options are Calibri, Helvetica, Arial, Verdana, Open San Source Sans Pro, Roboto or Noro Sans. Make your page margins 0.5 inches. Consider using 14-point size font for titles and 10-point for the main text in your resume. The resume builder can help you create a resume using these recommendations and uses the information in your USAJOBS profile to help you get started. Helpful Hints for Creating a Two-Page Resume: Prioritize most relevant and recent experience Use concise, results focused language Align language from the job announcement Focus on demonstrating skills and competencies Remove outdated or unrelated experience Use the USAJOBS resume builder Additional guidance on this new requirement and resume building tools can be found at: https://help.usajobs.gov/faq/application/documents/resume/page-limit https://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/hiring-information/merit-hiring-plan-resources/applicant-guidance-on-the-two-page-resume-limit/ Special Employment Consideration: VA encourages persons with disabilities to apply, including those eligible for hiring under 5 CFR 213.3102(u), Schedule A, Appointment of persons with disabilities [i.e., intellectual disabilities, severe physical disabilities, or psychiatric disabilities], and/or Disabled veterans with a compensable service-connected disability of 30% or more. Contact the Agency Contact for information on how to apply under this appointment authority via the Selective Placement Coordinator. The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) and Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well-qualified: applicants must possess experience that exceeds the minimum qualifications of the position including all selective factors, and who are proficient in most of the required competencies of the job. Information about ICTAP and CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/ " target="_blank">"http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/ During the application process you may have an option to opt-in to make your resume available to hiring managers in the agency who have similar positions. Opting in does not impact your application for this announcement, nor does it guarantee further consideration for additional positions.

WhatToExpectNext

Once your online application is submitted you will receive a confirmation notification by email. After we receive application packages (including all required documents) and the vacancy announcement closes, we will review applications to ensure qualification and eligibility requirements are met. After the review is complete, a referral certificate(s) is issued and applicants will be notified of their status by email. Referred applicants will be notified as such and may be contacted directly by the hiring office for an interview. All referred applicants receive a final notification once a selection decision has been made. You may check the status of your application at any time by logging into your USA Jobs account and clicking on Applications. Information regarding your application status can be found in the USAJobs Help Center. NOTE: Participation in the seasonal influenza program is a condition of employment and a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP). It is a requirement that all HCP to receive annual seasonal influenza vaccination or obtain an exemption for medical or religious reasons. Wearing a face mask is required when an exemption to the influenza vaccination has been granted. HCP in violation of this directive may face disciplinary action up to and including removal from federal service. HCP are individuals who, during the influenza season, work in VHA locations or who come into contact with VA patients or other HCP as part of their duties. VHA locations include, but are not limited to, VA hospitals and associated clinics, community living centers (CLCs), community-based outpatient clinics (CBOCs), domiciliary units, Vet centers and VA-leased medical facilities. HCP include all VA licensed and unlicensed, clinical and administrative, remote and onsite, paid and without compensation, full- and part-time employees, intermittent employees, fee basis employees, VA contractors, researchers, volunteers and health professions trainees (HPTs) who are expected to perform any or all of their work at these facilities. HPTs may be paid or unpaid and include residents, interns, fellows and students. HCP also includes VHA personnel providing home-based care to Veterans and drivers and other personnel whose duties put them in contact with patients outside VA medical facilities.

RequiredDocuments

To apply for this position, you must provide a complete Application Package which includes: Peer Specialist Certification Resume Résumé Reminder: Your résumé must include the following information each job listed: 1. Job title 2. Duties (be as detailed as possible) 3. Month & year start/end dates (e.g. June 2007 to April 2008) 4. Full-time or part-time status (include hours worked per week). Please be aware that your answers will be verified against information provided on your résumé. Be sure that your résumé clearly supports your responses to all of the questions by addressing your work experience in detail. An incomplete application will receive a rating of IFFM (ineligible due to missing forms). Requests for reconsideration will not be considered for applicants who fail to submit a complete application package. We cannot be held responsible for incompatible software or fax transmissions. The following documents are accepted, and may be required if applicable to your eligibility and/or qualifications for this position. Please 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. Cover Letter DD-214/ Statement of Service Disability Letter (Schedule A) Disability Letter (VA) Peer Specialist Certification Proof of Marriage Status Resume Separation Notice (RIF) SF-15 SF-50/ Notification of Personnel Action Transcript SF-50, Notification of Personnel Action (if applicable for Time in Grade and/or Eligibility): Most recent SF-50 if you are a current or former Federal employee An SF-50 showing your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade Award 50's do not provide sufficient information and will not be accepted for the purpose of verifying time-in-grade. Examples of appropriate SF-50's include: Within grade increases at the highest grade held; or Promotions with an effective date more than one year old; or SF-50's at the highest grade held with an effective date more than one year old. 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) 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.

Benefits

BenefitsUrl

http://www.vacareers.va.gov/why-choose-va/benefits/index.asp

OtherInformation

State-certified peer specialists who wish to relocate will need to check their current state and the new state to verify certification requirements. This should be completed before applying to peer specialist positions in a different state. Verification must be made that the peer specialist possesses a valid certification before being appointment to the position. Receiving Service Credit for Earning Annual (Vacation) Leave: Federal Employees earn annual leave at a rate (4, 6 or 8 hours per pay period) which is based on the number of years they have served as a Federal employee. VA may offer newly-appointed Federal employee's credit for their job-related non-federal experience or active duty uniformed military service. This credited service can be used in determining the rate at which they earn annual leave. Such credit must be requested and approved prior to the appointment date and is not guaranteed. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.

KeyRequirements

WithinArea

False

CommuteDistance

0

ServiceType

01

AnnouncementClosingType

01

AgencyContactEmail

Jennie.McGaffigan@va.gov

AgencyContactPhone

781-824-0877

SecurityClearance

Not Required

DrugTestRequired

False

PositionSensitivitiy

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

AdjudicationType

• Credentialing
• Suitability/Fitness