Supervisory Public Affairs Specialist

Federal Bureau of Prisons

• $100K — $120K *
Education, Government & Non-Profit
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • 5-7 years of experience in public affairs or communications management
  • Proven ability to develop and implement strategic communications plans
  • Experience supervising and mentoring communications staff
  • Strong writing and editing skills for public-facing materials
  • Expertise in managing media relations and digital communications

Responsibilities

  • Supervise and direct the Public Affairs team, ensuring high-quality communications products
  • Develop and execute strategic communications plans aligned with the U.S. Attorney's Office mission
  • Review and edit press releases, statements, and other public-facing materials for accuracy and compliance
  • Lead media relations, managing inquiries and enhancing coverage of the Office's initiatives
  • Oversee social media and digital communications strategy to expand reach and engagement

Benefits

  • Comprehensive benefits package for federal employees
  • Access to a range of family benefits
  • Eligibility for various federal employee programs
  • Opportunities for professional development and training
  • Support for work-life balance through flexible work arrangements
Full Job Description
Duties

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If selected for this position, you will join a well-respected team in the Front Office of the United States Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia. As the Supervisory Public Affairs Officer, you will provide oversight to designing, conducting, and managing the public, media, and information programs for the United States Attorney's Office, District of Columbia, which is the largest most complex and case-intensive office in the United States.

Typical work assignments will include:

  • Supervises and directs the Public Affairs team, assigning work, setting priorities and deadlines, monitoring performance, and ensuring high-quality communications products.
  • Develops and executes strategic communications plans supporting the mission and priorities of the U.S. Attorney's Office.
  • Reviews and edits press releases, statements, talking points, speeches, media advisories, and other public-facing materials for accuracy, clarity, consistency, and compliance with Department of Justice policies.
  • Leads media relations and proactive communications, including managing local and national media relationships, responding to media inquiries, and identifying opportunities to increase coverage of the Office's cases, initiatives, and priorities.
  • Oversees the Office's social media and digital communications strategy, overseeing content across platforms and identifying opportunities to expand reach and engagement.


Responsibilities will increase and assignments will become more complex as your training and experience progress.

Requirements

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Conditions of employment

  • You must be a United States Citizen or National to apply for this position.
  • Selective Service: Males born after 12/31/59 must be registered or exempt from Selective Service (see http://www.sss.gov/).
  • All Federal employees are required to have Federal salary payments made by direct deposit to a financial institution of their choosing.
  • Initial appointment is conditioned upon a satisfactory pre-employment adjudication. This includes fingerprint, credit and tax checks, and drug testing. Continued employment is subject to a favorable adjudication of a background investigation.
  • A probationary period may be required.
  • If you receive a conditional offer of employment for this position, you will be required to complete an Optional Form 306, Declaration for Federal Employment, and to sign and certify the accuracy of all information in your application.
  • Must provide resume and supporting documents (See required documents).
  • Time-in-Grade: Current or former Federal employees applying under merit promotion considerations must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements for consideration within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement.
  • You must meet all qualification requirements within 30 days after the closing date of this announcement and before placement in the position.
  • If selected, you will be subject to the satisfactory completion of a one year supervisory or managerial probationary period unless this requirement has been met previously.
  • As needed, additional selections may be made using this announcement.


Qualifications



MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS: To be considered minimally qualified for this position, you must demonstrate that you have the required basic requirement and specialized experience for the respective grade level in which you are applying:

To qualify at the GS-14 level, you must possess:

Specialized Experience: At least one year of specialized experience equivalent to the GS-13 level in the Federal service performing (obtained in either the public or private sectors) (3) of the (4) duties listed below:

  1. Supervising public affairs or communications staff by assigning work, establishing priorities and deadlines, monitoring performance, and reviewing communications products;
  2. Developing and implementing strategic communications plans and providing communications advice to senior leadership on sensitive matters;
  3. Preparing, reviewing, and editing press releases, statements, talking points, speeches, media advisories, and other public-facing communications;
  4. Managing media, digital, and social-media communications, including responding to media inquiries, coordinating messaging with partner agencies, or producing content for media and digital platforms.


IN DESCRIBING YOUR EXPERIENCE, PLEASE BE CLEAR AND SPECIFIC. WE MAY NOT MAKE ASSUMPTIONS REGARDING YOUR 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.

If your resume does not support your questionnaire answers, we will not allow credit for your response(s). For more information on the qualifications for this position, click here.

TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENTS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-13is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-14 level.

  • You must submit your SF-50 that shows Time-in-Grade eligibility and reflects your title, series, and grade. No award SF-50 will be accepted; recommended SF-50s include promotions and step increases (within grade increases).


Education

This job does not have an education qualification requirement.

Additional information

Payment of relocation expenses will not be authorized.

Background Investigation: To ensure the accomplishment of its mission, the Department of Justice requires each and every employee to be reliable and trustworthy. To meet those standards, all selected applicants must undergo and successfully complete a background investigation for a clearance as a condition of placement in this Moderate Risk position. This review includes financial issues such as delinquency in the payment of debts, child support and/or tax obligations, as well as certain criminal offenses and illegal use or possession of drugs.

The Interagency Career Transition Assistance Plan (ICTAP) provides eligible displaced Federal competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a displaced employee eligible for ICTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your ICTAP eligibility; 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement; and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria. Additional information about ICTAP eligibility, click here.

The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provides eligible surplus and displaced competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. If your agency has notified you in writing that you are a surplus or displaced employee eligible for CTAP consideration, you may receive selection priority if: 1) this vacancy is within your CTAP eligibility, 2) you apply under the instructions in this announcement, and 3) you are found well-qualified for this vacancy. To be well qualified, you must satisfy all qualification requirements for the vacant position and rate equivalent to the Highly Qualified or better category using established category rating criteria. Additional information about CTAP eligibility, click here.

Special Hiring Authorities for Military Spouse and Family Members: FedsHireVets - OPM.gov

Reasonable Accommodation (RA) Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a RA in your online application. Requests for RA for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for RA must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for RA are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, based on your adjudication decision. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a RA, please review the Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments: Procedures for Requesting a Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments.

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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.

Review our benefits

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.

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