Supervisory Microbiologist

US-Agricultural-Research-Servic; Manhattan (KS); On-site; USD 110,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF) in Manhattan, Kansas, part of the USDA Agricultural Research Services, seeks a candidate to lead containment operations programs and biosafety initiatives for high-containment labs. This role supports safety compliance and the execution of essential science research.

Qualified applicants have specialized experience at GS-13/14 levels, including implementing BSL-3/BSL-4 containment, validating autoclaves and decontamination systems, and conducting

Qualifications

• Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised.
• Qualified experience includes implementing BSL-3/BSL-4 containment programs.
• Experience includes validation activities related to autoclaves and decontamination systems.

Responsibilities

• Lead biosafety and biosecurity activities and trainings for high-containment labs.
• Provide operational support to safely operate complex laboratory infrastructure.
• Support execution of science research while maintaining safety and compliance.

Job description

This position is located at the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Services (ARS), The National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility (NBAF), located in Manhattan, Kansas.

The mission is to provide leadership, subject-matter expertise, quality maintenance, and operational support in implementing biosafety, biosecurity, training and written instructions to safely operate the complex, critical laboratory infrastructure and support the execution of science research. Applicants must meet all qualifications and eligibility requirements by the closing date of the announcement including specialized experience and/or education, as defined below.

In addition to meeting the basic education requirement in the Education Section below, all applicants must also meet the following minimum qualification requirements

Specialized Experience:

Specialized experience is experience directly related to the position to be filled. Specialized experience must be described for each grade level advertised. The specialized experience requirements for this position are: Qualifying experience for GS-14 includes one year of specialized experience comparable to GS-13 which is directly related to the work of this position, and which has equipped the applicant with the knowledge, skills, and abilities to perform successfully the duties of the position. For this position, specialized experience is the experience implementing a BSL-3 and BSL-4 containment operations program; performing validation activities related to autoclaves, thermal tissue autoclaves, effluent decontamination systems, gamma irradiation, Vaporized hydrogen peroxide or Chlorine dioxide gas decontamination, performing risk assessments and incident investigations.

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 and can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.