Park Manager

Summary

You will serve as a Park Manager with National Park Service.

This position is located at Mammoth Cave National Park.

This is a temporary promotion or detail not to exceed 1 year. However, you may be released from the assignment and returned to your permanent position of record at any time during this period for any reason. As a temporary promotion, this may be made permanent without further competition.

Duties

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At the full performance level (GS-15) the major duties of this position include, but are not limited to the following:

1. Provides leadership, develops plans, and executes programs to operate and manage Mammoth Cave National Park (MACA).
2. Assigns responsibilities, delegates authority, coordinates work plans and programs, and evaluates the effectiveness of individual activities and total operations.
3. Responsible for all aspects of planning related to the development, operation and protection of the park.
4. Maintains effective public and community relations with a large number of local and national interest groups and individuals such as tribal councils; environmental organizations; chambers of commerce and civic groups; sportsmen's clubs; outdoor and other citizen groups; and newspaper, radio and television representatives.
5. Oversees management of the park's interpretive program, environmental education program, and fee collection/management, to ensure the park's diverse clientele receive a quality visitor experience.
6. Administers and implements a broad-spectrum program for restoring and managing natural resources.
7. Oversees the park's partnerships program and seeks out prospective partners to advance the mission of the park.

For additional information about Mammoth Cave National Park, please visit: Mammoth Cave National Park (U.S. National Park Service).

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

• Must be a U.S. Citizen or National.
• Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication.
• Males born after 12-31-59 must be registered for Selective Service.
• Direct Deposit participation required.
• Must possess and maintain a valid driver's license throughout employment.
• You are required to wear a uniform and comply with uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided.
• You are required to complete training, obtain and maintain a government credit card with travel and purchase authority.
• A financial disclosure report will be required within 30 days of appointment.
• You may be required to work on-call, evenings, weekends, holidays, overtime and shift work.
• You may be required to travel overnight away from home. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.
• Travel, transportation & relocation expenses will not be paid. Relocation expenses will be the employee's responsibility.
• Government housing is available.

*Additional Requirements located under Qualifications*

Qualifications

Requirements Continued...

This is a supervisory position that may require completion of a supervisory probationary period.

As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you may be required to serve a 1-year probationary period to evaluate your fitness and whether your continuation of employment advances the public interest.

This probationary period is an extension of the appointment process and therefore requires the agency to determine if continued employment would advance the public interest, meet the organization goals and mission of the agency, and/or otherwise promote the efficiency of the service. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, the agency will 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.

Under applicable law, the employment of an individual serving a probationary period automatically terminates when that period ends unless the agency affirmatively certifies, in writing, that the individual's employment should continue and that their appointment should be finalized. In the absence of agency action to affirmatively certify continued employment beyond the probationary period, such appointments are terminated. Upon completion of your probationary period your employment will be terminated unless you receive certification, in writing, that your continued employment advances the public interest.

Qualifications:

All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement - 11/18/2026-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Competitive candidates must also meet Time-in-Grade requirements as defined in 5 CFR 300, Subpart F.

For current Federal employees, if hours worked per week are not included on your resume, you must submit a non-award SF-50 as part of your application to be used to validate your work schedule and determine the amount of specialized experience that you will be granted. An award SF-50 will not be acceptable documentation for which to consider your amount of qualifying experience. For periods of time that reflect military service, the DD-214 or Statement of Service is sufficient to meet the work schedule requirement as the service dates will be reflected. For all other applicants who are not current federal employees, your resume must state either "full-time" (or "40 hours a week") or "part-time" with the number of hours worked per week to ensure proper crediting of specialized experience.

To qualify for this position at the GS-15 grade level, you must possess the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement:

Specialized Experience: To qualify, you must possess at least one full year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-14 grade level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is experience that demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to perform successfully the duties of the position to be filled. Park-related or similar land management experience may have been in technical, administrative, resource management, or scientific work, fish and wildlife management, recreation management, law enforcement, or other park-related work. Examples of qualifying specialized experience include, but are not limited to: Management or program specialist work involving the development and implementation of policy related to protection, conservation, or management of park areas or similar operations; Management work in a park, recreation, or conservation area; Directing park-related or similar land management programs and work through direct and indirect

supervision. You must include hours per week worked on your resume.

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

Education

This position does not allow substituting education for experience.

Additional information

Physical Demands: Work is mostly sedentary; however, significant pressures generated from an extensive variety of influences may result in significant psychological pressure, exposure to stressful situations and periods of intense workload. Frequent public contacts, attendance at conferences, planning and negotiation meetings involve operating in a very stressful environment. Work hours can be long and erratic. Occasional trips to field locations may involve hiking short distances inside the cave, over rough and uneven terrain, traveling over rough roads in 4-wheel drive vehicles, or low level flying in helicopters or fixed-wing aircraft. Frequent work-related travel is required that may involve brief exposure to natural hazards and primitive conditions. A healthy constitution is required although little physical labor is involved.

Work Environment: Work is performed primarily in office and meeting rooms. Field inspections may require trips into caves or river travel.

Telework: The duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval.

Candidates should be committed to improving the efficiency of the Federal government, passionate about the ideals of our American republic, and committed to upholding the rule of law and the United States Constitution.

Benefits

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A career with the U.S. government provides employees with a comprehensive benefits package. As a federal employee, you and your family will have access to a range of benefits that are designed to make your federal career very rewarding. Opens in a new windowLearn more about federal benefits.

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Eligibility for benefits depends on the type of position you hold and whether your position is full-time, part-time or intermittent. Contact the hiring agency for more information on the specific benefits offered.