Chaplain

US-Department-of-Veterans-Affair; Cleveland (OH); On-site; USD 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is recruiting for a Chaplain. The Chaplain will function in Chaplain Service and provide religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons in the Veterans, caregivers, or staff communities.

Applicants must meet basic requirements and qualifications within 30 days of the closing date; this includes faith-endorsement, board certification, and English proficiency. The full performance level is GS-12, with preferred specialty certification in Mental

Qualifications

• Master of Divinity or equivalent from CHEA/ATS-accredited program.
• Ecclesiastical endorsement dated within 12 months from endorsing body.
• Board certification by BCCI or recognized body with reciprocity.
• English proficiency in speaking and writing.
• U.S. citizenship required; non-citizens only per VA policy.

Responsibilities

• Provide religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to veterans, caregivers, and staff.
• Serve in Chaplain Service and support the pluralistic setting of VA facilities.
• Apply advanced clinical knowledge to spiritual care and policy development.

Skills

Theology/Ministry KSAs

Advanced clinical knowledge

Conflict mediation

Research literacy

Policy writing (guidelines)

Mentoring/teaching

English language proficiency

Education

Master of Divinity or equivalent

Board Certified Chaplain (BCCI) or equivalent

Job description

The VA Northeast Ohio Healthcare System is recruiting for an Chaplain. The Chaplain will function in Chaplain Service. The incumbent provides religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons that are commensurate with the needs, desires, and voluntary consent of the Veteran, caregiver, or staff.

In order to qualify for this position, you must meet the requirements below within 30 calendar days of the closing date listed on the announcement.

Basic Requirements

• United States Citizenship: Non-citizens may only be appointed when it is not possible to recruit qualified citizens in accordance with VA Policy.
• 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.
  • NOTE: For applicants who do not possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational degree, an approved educational equivalency review from a nationally recognized board certification body for chaplains (see paragraph f) is acceptable.
• 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.
• 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. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved endorsing organizations that can be found here: https://www.patientcare.va.gov/chaplain/EmpJoyment Information and_Resources.asp
• 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 ®. Board Certification that requires 4 units of CPE is qualifying.
  • Exception for NON-Board Certified Chaplains:
    • Non-Board-Certified applicants who otherwise meet the eligibility requirements, may be given a temporary appointment as a Chaplain under the authority of 38 U.S.C. § 7405(c)(2) not to exceed 2 years.
    • Non-Board-Certified Chaplains must provide proof of completion of 4 units of CPE as required by an approved board certifying body.
    • Non-Board-Certified individuals may only provide care under the supervision of a certified Chaplain at or above the FPL.
    • Non-Board-Certified individuals may only be appointed at the entry level and may not be promoted/converted until certification is obtained. Temporary appointments of non-board-certified Chaplains may not be extended beyond 2 years or be converted to a new temporary appointment.
• English Language Proficiency: Chaplains must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f).
• May qualify based on being covered by the Grandfathering Provision as described in the VA Qualification Standard for this occupation (only applicable to current VHA employees who are in this occupation and meet the criteria).

Grade Determinations

Experience Requirement: In addition to meeting the basic requirements, to qualify for the GS-12, do you possess at least one (1) year of creditable experience equivalent to the next lower grade level (GS-11).

Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills and Abilities: In addition the candidate must meet the experience above and demonstrate the following KSAs:

• Ability to apply relevant theories and methodologies to their ministry specialty.
• Ability to integrate specialized psychological and sociological theory with an advanced approach to spiritual care.
• Skill to seek out primary research and research literature that informs the ministry specialty and one's spiritual care practice.
• Skill in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of chaplain practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes.
• Ability to mediate conflict, hold various emotions and diffuse moral distress among staff and complex crisis situations.
• Ability to provide specialized consultation, teaching and mentoring to colleagues and students on advanced spiritual care interventions in the service delivery area.
• Ability to apply advanced clinical knowledge to write policies, procedures and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area.

Preferred Experience

• Specialty Certification in Mental Health or Suicide Prevention

Reference: For more information on this qualification standard, please visit https://www.va.gov/ohrm/QualificationStandards/. The full performance level of this vacancy is GS-12.