Summary The Legal Administrative Specialist (Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinator) serves as a member of the Public Contact Team, located in the Veterans Service Center. The Legal Administrative Specialist (Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinator) provides in-depth information and comprehensive assistance to veterans, their dependents, and beneficiaries concerning any matter within the scope of VA benefits and related non-VA benefits. Responsibilities This position is located at the Nashville Regional Office, Veterans Benefits Administration in Nashville, Tennessee. The Legal Administrative Specialist provides superior customer service to our Nation's Veterans and their families. Typical duties include, but are not limited to: Provides in-depth information and comprehensive assistance to veterans, their dependents, and beneficiaries concerning any matter within the scope of VA benefits and related non-VA benefits. Provides training materials (pamphlets, handouts, etc.) to shelters, homeless service providers and homeless veterans. This includes, but is not limited to, benefit orientations, counseling and assistance with claims. Prepares technical correspondence to veterans and their dependents providing benefit information, representation rights and response to miscellaneous inquiries. Provide referral, applicant assistance, advocacy, and follow-up, when necessary, to appropriate service programs. In this position, the incumbent will represents the VBA Regional Office as liaison with local VA and non-profit community homeless specific organizations, homeless advocacy groups, and other support activities. As such, coordinates VA benefit programs to best serve homeless veterans and their families. Promotion Potential: The selectee may be promoted to the full performance level without further competition when all regulatory, qualification, and performance requirements are met. Selection at a lower grade level does not guarantee promotion to the full performance level. Work Schedule: Full time, varied work schedule to provide contact center coverage Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). Tour will be determined after final selections. Tour is subject to change based on program needs. Compressed/Flexible: Not available Telework: This position is eligible for situational (ad hoc) telework only. The selectee is required to report to the official duty station each scheduled workday. Telework may be approved only on a case-by-case basis with supervisory approval. Routine or recurring telework is not authorized for this position. Successful candidates should expect to work Monday through Friday as part of a distributed team that services 40,000 or more callers each day between the hours of 8 a.m. to 9 p.m. Eastern Standard Time (EST). How You'll Work: The employee will be required to travel to the closest VA Regional Office, VA Medical Center, or other VA facility for issuance of equipment, and as needed for technical support. Government furnished equipment includes a laptop computer, camera, docking station, monitor screens and headset. A secure VPN will be used to access Microsoft Office products and specific communications software including a soft phone to educate and connect Veterans with the benefits they have earned. Position Description/PD#: Legal Administrative Specialist (Homeless Veterans Outreach Coordinator) GS-10: 41793A Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized Financial Disclosure Report: Not required Bargaining Unit: Yes Requirements Conditions of Employment As a condition of employment for accepting this position, you will be required to serve a 1-year probationary period during which we will evaluate your fitness and whether your continued employment advances the public interest. In determining if your employment advances the public interest, we may 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. 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. Additional Conditions of Employment are as follows: You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959 You may be required to serve a probationary or trial period Subject to background/security investigation Selected applicants will be required to complete an online onboarding process. Acceptable form(s) of identification will be required to complete pre-employment requirements I-9 Acceptable Documents. Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued identification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement:08/07/2026. TIME-IN-GRADE REQUIREMENT: Applicants who are current Federal employees and have held a GS grade any time in the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. If you are a current VBA employee requesting a reassignment or change to lower grade via this vacancy announcement, you must currently hold the GS- 09 (or higher) and the promotion potential of your current position must be at least GS-10. The grade may have been in any occupation, but must have been held in the Federal service. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. An SF-50 that shows your time-in-grade eligibility must be submitted with your application materials. If the most recent SF-50 has an effective date within the past year, it may not clearly demonstrate you possess one-year time-in-grade, as required by the announcement. In this instance, you must provide an additional SF-50 that clearly demonstrates one-year time-in-grade. MINIMUM QUALIFICATION REQUIREMENTS: You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-10 Grade Level: Specialized Experience: is defined as (1) experience that has demonstrated the capability of being a self-reliant decision-maker and possessing the ability to work independently when providing customer service benefits counseling and claims processing. (2) The individual must possess in-depth knowledge of researching relevant subject matter. (3) The experience should be significantly and directly derived from federal, military, or the private sector. Specialized Experience is defined as experience that has equipped the applicant to perform at the journeyman level of this position with little to no training or supervision. Specialized Experience: One year of specialized experience (equivalent to the GS-09 grade level in the federal service); experience that equipped the applicant with the particular knowledge, skills and abilities (KSA's) and other characteristics to perform successfully the duties of the position, and that is typically in or related to the work of the position to be filled, in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience include but are not limited to orating to persons from a wide variety of backgrounds regarding VA benefits programs; performing research of local, state, and Federal laws and regulations to determine Veterans' eligibility for benefits programs. NOTE: Specialized experience is defined as (1) experience that has demonstrated the capability of being a self-reliant decision-maker and possessing the ability to work independently when providing customer service benefits counseling and claims processing. (2) The individual must possess in-depth knowledge of researching relevant subject matter. (3) The experience should be significantly and directly derived from federal, military, or the private sector. OR Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have two and a half years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree. Graduate level education must demonstrate the competencies necessary to do the work of the position. (Must submit transcripts). OR Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have a combination of specialized experience and education beyond two years of progressively higher level graduate education. Note for GS-10: Only graduate education in excess of the amount required for the next lower grade level may be used in combination with experience to qualify applicants. Combining Education & Experience: If you do not fully meet the length of experience and education described for a specific grade level (e.g. have six months of experience and some coursework but not a degree), the two can be combined to total 100% of the requirement. Click here for more information. 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; religions; 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. Full vs. Part-Time Employment: Full-time employment is considered to be at least 35 hours per week. Part-time experience will be credited on a pro-rated basis; when including part-time employment in your resume you must specify the average hours worked per week. Physical Requirements: The work is mostly sedentary. The employee will be required to talk for long periods of time which occasionally puts a strain on the throat/vocal cords. There are no other special physical demands required to perform the work. There may be some walking, standing, and carrying of light items such as papers, books, claims folders, and files from one desk to another or for returning to storage. Extensive use of a computer and a telephone with a headset is required. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at http://://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/classification-qualifications/general-schedule-qualification-standards/. Education A transcript must be submitted with your application if you are basing all or part of your qualifications on education. Education must be accredited by an accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education to be credited towards qualifications. Provide only the attendance and/or degrees from schools accredited by accrediting institutions recognized by the U.S. Department of Education. All education claimed by applicants will be verified upon appointment. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript to receive credit. Note: You may submit unofficial transcripts when applying. However, if you are selected for the position, you will be required to provide an official transcript or a statement from the institution (e.g., from the registrar, dean, or other appropriate official) or equivalent documentation prior to the start date. Additional Information VA supports the use of telework as a way to help attract and retain talented individuals in public service, increase worker productivity, and better prepare the agency to operate during emergencies. This position may be authorized for telework. Telework eligibility will be discussed during the interview process. The Career Transition Assistance Plan (CTAP) provide eligible displaced VA competitive service employees with selection priority over other candidates for competitive service vacancies. To be qualified you must submit appropriate documentation (a copy of the agency notice, your most recent performance rating, and your most recent SF-50 noting current position, grade level, and duty location) and be found well-qualified (have a final rating of 85 or more) for this vacancy. Information about CTAP eligibility is on OPM's Career Transition Resources website at http://www.opm.gov/policy-data-oversight/workforce-restructuring/employee-guide-to-career-transition/. Placement Policy: The posting of this announcement does not obligate management to fill a vacancy or vacancies by promotion. The position may be filled by reassignment, change to lower grade, transfer, appointment, or reinstatement. Management may use any one or any combination of these methods to fill the position. It is the policy of the VA to not deny employment to those that have faced financial hardships or periods of unemployment. This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Veterans and Transitioning Service Members: Please visit the VA for Vets site for career-search tools for Veterans seeking employment at VA, career development services for our existing Veterans, and coaching and reintegration support for military service members. For more information on the "Who may apply" eligibility requirements, please refer to the OHRM Status Candidates and Other Candidate Definitions document. Under the Fair Chance to Compete Act, the Department of Veterans Affairs prohibits requesting an applicant's criminal history prior to accepting a tentative job offer (TJO). Please visit the Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP), https://www.va.gov/EMPLOYEE/documents/The-Fair-Chance-to-Compete-Act.pdf If you are unable to apply online or need an alternate method to submit documents, please reach out to the Agency Contact listed in this Job Opportunity Announcement.
