Chaplain (CPE Educator)

Summary

This position is located within the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration (VHA), Veterans Affairs Medical Centers (VAMC), Chaplain Service (CS). The position provides services within various settings, including Veterans Integrated Service Networks (VISNs), Inpatient Clinics, Outpatient Clinics, and domiciliaries throughout the United States. Most Chaplain services are usually provided in a medical facility structure.

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Overview

• Accepting applications
• Open & closing dates

05/15/2025 to 09/30/2025

• Salary

$89,939 - $116,925 per year

• Pay scale & grade

GS 12

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Location

2 vacancies in the following location:

• Hampton, VA

• Remote job

No

• Telework eligible

No

• Travel Required

Not required

• Relocation expenses reimbursed

No

• Appointment type

Permanent

• Work schedule

Full-time

• Service

Excepted

• Promotion potential

12

• Job family (Series)

• 0060 Chaplain

• Supervisory status

No

• Security clearance

Not Required

• Drug test

No

• Position sensitivity and risk

Non-sensitive (NS)/Low Risk

• Trust determination process

• Suitability/Fitness

• Financial disclosure

No

• Bargaining unit status

Yes

• Announcement number

CBTA-12736910-25-KB

• Control number

837088700

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This job is open to

• The public

U.S. Citizens, Nationals or those who owe allegiance to the U.S.

• Internal to an agency

Current federal employees of the hiring agency that posted the job announcement.

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Duties

This is an OPEN CONTINUOUS ANNOUNCEMENT and will remain open until September 30, 2025 or until all positions are filled. The initial cut-off date for referral of eligible applications will be 9 June 2025, with subsequent cut-off dates every two weeks. Eligible applications received after that date will be referred at regular intervals or as additional vacancies occur on an as-needed basis until positions are filled.

The incumbent serves as a Chaplain Clinical Pastoral Educator (CPE) performing senior-level clinical assignments for the VHA. The incumbent provides comprehensive religious, spiritual, and pastoral care to all persons that are commensurate with the needs, desires, and voluntary consent of the Veteran, caregiver, or staff. The incumbent addresses the spiritual component of health and wellness in every patient care setting to ensure that pastoral care is fully integrated into all aspects of chaplain services.

• Educates, trains, and coaches volunteer groups who offer their services and assistance. Provides expert guidance and advice to other VHA Chaplains.
• Engages in group consultative discussions or conferences with treatment professionals to provide senior-level Chaplain related input. Collaborates with IDT on the evaluation and review of VHA's CPE Center program progress.
• Identifies other Chaplains and faith leaders and/or persons from the community to provide patients' religious needs if necessary. Uses thorough knowledge of different faiths to perform various religious rituals, lead prayers, and answer spiritual questions.
• Provides guidance and support for patients to express values through processes such as life review, oral history, and end of life preparation and documentation.
• Provides specialized consultation, teaching, and mentoring to healthcare staff and trainees on advanced spiritual care interventions in the service delivery area.
• Provides appropriate education and training to other healthcare staff and trainees to screen for spiritual and religious needs and the importance of appropriate referrals to chaplains for complex spiritual distress.
• Provides guidance and support for patients to express values through processes such as life review, oral history, and end of life preparation and documentation. Maintains records and appropriately documents chaplaincy care services in the Electronic Health Record Management (EHRM) system/Computerized Patient Record System (CPRS) through either service approved template or Subjective, Objective, Assessment, and Plan (SOAP) note format.
• Serves as a liaison to local seminaries, ordained persons, and others concerning CPE. Participates in the broader life of Accredited CPE through the National and Community of Practice events. Develops curriculum for an internship program, supervises students clinical work, and evaluates student's performance.
• Educates all levels of CPE students independently. Plans, organizes, and implements all levels of the CPE program. Conducts assessments to identify student's strengths and needs and creates educational plans for students.

Work Schedule: 7:30am-4:00pm M-F

Telework: Available

Virtual: This is not a virtual position.

Functional Statement #: 000000

Relocation/Recruitment Incentives: Not Authorized

Permanent Change of Station (PCS): Not Authorized

Financial Disclosure Report: Not required

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Requirements

Conditions of Employment

• You must be a U.S. Citizen to apply for this job.
• Selective Service Registration is required for males born after 12/31/1959.
• Must be proficient in written and spoken English.
• You may be required to serve a probationary 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 (). Effective May 7, 2025, driver's licenses or state-issued dentification cards that are not REAL ID compliant cannot be utilized as an acceptable form of identification for employment.
• Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP).

Qualifications

Basic Requirements:

• 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: Applicants must possess a Master of Divinity degree or equivalent educational qualifications as evidenced by a graduate-level theological degree from a college, university or theological school accredited by a member of the Council for Higher Education Accreditation (CHEA) or Association of Theological Schools (ATS) and recognized by the U.S. Department of Education

Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE).

• Applicants must have completed four units of CPE from a CPE center that is accredited by an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.
• To provide educational supervision for students seeking to become Certified Educators, the Chaplain CPE Educator must be a CPE national faculty from an organization recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.

Ecclesiastical Endorsement. In accordance with 38 C.F.R. § 17.655, ecclesiastical endorsement is a condition of employment as a VA chaplain. An individual must possess and maintain a full and active ecclesiastical endorsement to be employed as a VA chaplain. Applicants must have an ecclesiastical endorsement, dated within the past 12 months. Ecclesiastical endorsements must be from the official national endorsing authority of the applicant's/employee's faith group or denomination. Ecclesiastical endorsement is a written official statement, by the official national endorsing body of the faith group or denomination, certifying that the applicant is in good standing with the applicant's faith group or denomination; and stating that the individual is, in the opinion of the endorsing body, qualified to perform the full range of ministry required in the VA pluralistic setting. Loss of endorsement will result in removal from the GS-0060 Chaplain series and may result in termination of employment. The National Chaplain Service maintains a list of approved endorsing organizations that can be found here:

Board Certification. Applicants must be a Board Certified Chaplain certified by the Board of Chaplaincy Certification Inc. (BCCI) or nationally recognized certification body that utilizes the BCCI Common Qualifications and Competencies for Professional Chaplaincy or a certifying organization that has a reciprocity agreement with BCCI

Assignments. For all assignments above the journey level, the higher-level duties must consist of significant scope, complexity (difficulty), range of variety and be performed by the incumbent at least 25% of the time. The certified educator manages the daily operations of the CPE center, develops and implements program policies and procedures and serves as certified educators of record for all CPE students. They are responsible for administrative oversight and programmatic resources and monitoring of educational outcomes. They are responsible for all educator evaluations, student records, center portfolio and CPE accreditation requirements, which may include off-site CPE satellites and placement contracts. The certified educator seeks approval for allied health trainee positions through the Office of Academic Affiliations (OAA).