Senior Social Worker

Senior Social Worker

Department: Department of Veterans Affairs

Location(s): Fairview, Oregon

Salary Range: $107866 - $140232 Per Year

Job Summary: This position is eligible for the Education Debt Reduction Program (EDRP), a student loan payment reimbursement program. You must meet specific eligibility requirements per VHA policy and submit your EDRP application within four months of appointment. Program Approval, award amount (up to $200,000) & eligibility period (one to five years) are determined by the VHA Education Loan Repayment Services program office after review of the EDRP application. Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply.

Major Duties:

• Duties include but are not limited to: The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker has expertise in making psychosocial and psychiatric diagnosis within their scope of practice and works with Veterans to develop measurable treatment plans to address diagnosis and identified problems. The incumbent is assigned to the homeless program provides community based intensive case management services. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker will provide evidence-based practice treatment to Veterans that is consistent with Housing First and Harm Reduction and effectively uses motivational interviewing techniques to help Veteran move forward on identified goals. Specialized interventions will include individual, group, and family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced practice case management that address complex problems associated with homelessness. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker will function as a resource to less experienced, unlicensed social workers on the homeless team and may provide individual and group clinical supervision. Incumbent will lead clinical discussions, take initiative to staff complex cases, and support the HUD-VASH team with clinical consultation and oversight of programmatic requirements. Incumbent provides subject matter consultation to colleagues and students/trainees on the psychosocial treatment of patients treated for homelessness providing professional opinions based on experience and expertise and role modeling effective social work practice skills. Incumbent will teach and mentor staff and students in the specialty area of practice. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker will work with CRS leadership to assist with interventions and strategies to increase housing retention. Incumbent will work directly with the multidisciplinary Enhanced Team to help identify Veterans at risk of eviction and instability and will design interventions to improve outcomes. Incumbent routinely participates in multidisciplinary team meetings related to Veterans enrolled in homeless programs to ensure appropriate transitions of care for the population served. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker supports CRS leadership in managing caseload of assigned specialty area including voucher allocation within local Public Housing Authority and project-based housing and is an expert in using the Homeless Operation Management Evaluation Systems (HOMES) system, making improvements and adjustments as needed to ensure medical center performance are met or exceeded. Incumbent provides input to CRS leadership and assists with assists program development by assisting in writing policy, procedures, or practice guidelines. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker uses evidence-based practice techniques to engage Veterans in meeting individualized and patient-centered treatment goals and will monitor progress over time. Incumbent will be the Mental Health Treatment Coordinator for assigned caseload and will provide expert case management services. The incumbent is an expert on VA and community resources associated with homelessness, mental health, and substance use disorder treatment. Incumbent is available to the Veterans in area served and assists Veterans in linking to supportive environments in the areas in which they live. Incumbent independently follows medical center policy and procedures and provides clinical care that is consistent with Joint Commission and CARF expectations. The Senior HUD-VASH Social Worker develops and implements methods for measuring effectiveness of practice and services, utilizing outcome evaluations and use of evidence-based treatment modalities that are effective with Veterans who struggle with homelessness, substance use disorders, along with medically and psychiatrically complex diagnoses. Incumbent assists team members with clinical consultation and development of strategies for engagement of difficult to engage clients. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday, 08:00-1600 Compressed/Flexible: Not Available Telework: Not Available Virtual: This is not a virtual position. Functional Statement #: 000000 Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized EDRP Authorized: Former EDRP participants ineligible to apply for incentive. Contact V20CompensationTeam@va.gov, the EDRP Coordinator for questions/assistance. Learn more Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Qualifications: 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. Have a master's degree in social work from a school of social work fully accredited by the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE). Graduates of schools of social work that are in candidacy status do not meet this requirement until the School of Social Work is fully accredited. A doctoral degree in social work may not be substituted for the master's degree in social work. Verification of the degree can be made by going to http://www.cswe.org/Accreditation to verify that the social work degree meets the accreditation standards for a masters of social work. Licensure. Persons hired or reassigned to social worker positions in the GS-0185 series in VHA must be licensed or certified by a state to independently practice social work at the master's degree level. Current state requirements may be found by going to http://vaww.va.gov/OHRM/T38Hybrid/. [(1) Exception. VHA may waive the licensure or certification requirement for persons who are otherwise qualified, pending completion of state prerequisites for licensure/certification examinations. This exception only applies at the GS-9 grade level. For the GS-11 grade level and above, the candidate must be licensed or certified. At the time of appointment, the supervisor, chief social work or social work executive will provide the unlicensed/uncertified social worker with the written requirements for licensure or certification, including the time by which the license or certification must be obtained and the consequences for not becoming licensed or certified by the deadline.] Different states have different levels of licensure or certification, making it difficult for VHA staff to determine the independent practice level. Each state, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia completed surveys identifying the level of licensure or certification allowing independent practice. Copies of the surveys are on file in the VHA Office of Care Management and Social Work Services, and a summary spreadsheet of the levels of licensure or certification is available to social work professional standards board members for purposes of determining whether the social worker's level of licensure or certification meets the VHA qualification standards. All states except California use a series of licensure exams administered by the ASWB. Information can be found at https://www.aswb.org/. The ASWB is the association of boards that regulates social work. ASWB develops and maintains the social work licensing examination used across the country and is a central resource for information on the legal regulation of social work. The ASWB offers three examinations. The master's examination is generally used by states for the independent practice level of licensure or certification, while the advanced generalist and the clinical examinations are used for the advanced practice level of licensure or certification. Differences between the master's and the advanced exams demonstrate the expectation that advanced practice social workers will have a more sophisticated knowledge of practice theory and its application. (2) Failure to Obtain License or Certification. In all cases, social workers must actively pursue meeting state prerequisites for licensure or certification starting from the date of their appointment. Failure to become licensed or certified within the prescribed amount of time will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment. (3) Loss of Licensure or Certification. Once licensed or certified, social workers must maintain a full, valid, and unrestricted independent license or certification to remain qualified for employment. Loss of licensure or certification will result in removal from the GS-0185 social worker series and may result in termination of employment. 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). Physical Requirements. See VA Directive and Handbook 5019, Employee Occupational Health Services. English Language Proficiency. Candidates must be proficient in spoken and written English to be appointed as authorized by 38 U.S.C. § 7403(f). Grade Determinations: In addition to the basic requirements for employment, the following criteria must be met when determining the grade of candidates. Senior Social Worker, GS-12 (1) Experience/Education. The candidate must have at least two years of experience post advanced practice clinical licensure and should be in a specialized area of social work practice of which, one year must be equivalent to the GS-11 grade level. Senior social workers have experience that demonstrates possession of advanced practice skills and judgment. Senior social workers are experts in their specialized area of practice. Senior social workers may have certification or other post-masters training from a nationally recognized professional organization or university that includes a defined curriculum/course of study and internship or equivalent supervised professional experience in a specialty. (2) Licensure/Certification. Senior social workers must be licensed or certified by a state at the advanced practice level which included an advanced generalist or clinical examination, unless they are grandfathered by the state in which they are licensed to practice at the advanced practice level (except for licenses issued in California, which administers its own clinical examination for advanced practice) and they must be able to provide supervision for licensure. (3) Demonstrated Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities. In addition to the experience above, candidates must demonstrate all of the following KSAs: (a) Skill in a range of specialized interventions and treatment modalities used in specialty treatment programs or with special patient populations. This includes individual, group, and/or family counseling or psychotherapy and advanced level psychosocial and/or case management. (b) Ability to incorporate complex multiple causation in differential diagnosis and treatment within approved clinical privileges or scope of practice. (c) Knowledge in developing and implementing methods for measuring effectiveness of social work practice and services in the specialty area, utilizing outcome evaluations to improve treatment services and to design system changes. (d) Ability to provide specialized consultation to colleagues and students on the psychosocial treatment of patients in the service delivery area, as well as role modeling effective social work practice skills. (e) Ability to expand clinical knowledge in the social work profession, and to write policies, procedures, and/or practice guidelines pertaining to the service delivery area. Preferred Experience: Community based mental health setting. Experience working with chronically homeless. 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. The actual grade at which an applicant may be selected for this vacancy is in the range of GS-12 to GS-12.

How to Apply: All applicants are encouraged to apply online. To apply for this position, you must complete the full 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 12/09/2025 to receive consideration. To preview the questionnaire click https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/12838748. To begin, click Apply Online to create a USAJOBS 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.

Application Deadline: 2025-12-09