Summary This position is located at the Edwards Hines Jr., VA Hospital, Hines, IL in the Research and Development Service Line. The primary purpose of the position is to provide procedural and administrative support and management for the Institutional Review Board (IRB) which review all research projects involving human subjects conducted by VA personnel. Responsibilities Maintaining up-to-date knowledge of federal regulations regarding research involving human subjects. Resolving problems and discrepancies with research committee members. Creating agendas and prepare all submission for the research committee meetings. Conducting reviews of IRB submissions for completeness and proper content. Taking detailed meeting minutes for all research committee meetings. Creating and dispersing various correspondence and reports. Exercising independent authority to advise, inform, and instruct investigators and/or research team personnel as to proper submission protocol as required by Federal regulations. Performing pre-committee analysis of research proposals, including identifying problems and issues in proposals, contacting investigators requesting additions or corrections to the proposal. Determining which protocols are eligible for expedited review and recommends them to the Program Analyst. Conducting IRB file reviews insuring appropriate approval documents have been completed and filed appropriately. Preparing and submitting ongoing and new studies to the Research and Development Committee. Reviewing IRB submission for completeness and proper content. Assisting in assigning primary reviewers to studies for expedited review and creates correspondence authorizing appropriate action. Acting as a liaison between reviewers and investigators to ensure and accomplish requested modification. Communicate and have interpersonal relationships, including the ability to appropriately and courteously relate to customers. Resolve remaining problems and discrepancies identified by committee members and initiates resolutions with investigators and forwards the responses to the committee for approval. Work Schedule: Monday-Friday 8:00am-4:00pm Telework: May be authorized. Will be discussed during the interview process. Position Description/PD#: Program Specialist/PD20069O 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 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 Participation in the seasonal influenza vaccination program is a requirement for all Department of Veterans Affairs Health Care Personnel (HCP) Participation in the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) vaccination program is a requirement for all Veterans Health Administration Health Care Personnel (HCP) - See "Additional Information" below for details. Qualifications To qualify for this position, applicants must meet all requirements by the closing date of this announcement, 10/31/2024. 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 by the closing date of this announcement. For a GS-09 position you must have served 52 weeks at the GS-07. 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. 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. You may qualify based on your experience and/or education as described below: GS-9 Grade Requirements: Must have one of the following: Specialized Experience: You must have one year of specialized experience equivalent to at least the next lower grade GS-07 in the normal line of progression for the occupation in the organization. Examples of specialized experience would typically include, but are not limited to: Experience in maintaining up-to-date knowledge of federal regulations regarding research involving human subjects. Experience in resolving problems and discrepancies with research committee members. Creating agendas and prepare all submission for the IRB meetings. Conducting reviews of IRB submissions for completeness and proper content. Taking detailed meeting minutes for all IRB meetings. Creating and dispersing various correspondence and reports. Exercise independent authority to advise, inform, and instruct investigators and/or research team personnel as to proper submission protocol as required by Federal regulations. OR, Education: Applicants may substitute education for the required experience. To qualify based on education for this grade level you must have successfully completed master's or equivalent graduate degree; or 2 full years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to such a degree; or LL.B. or J.D., if related which demonstrates the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work of this position. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED) OR, Combination: Applicants may also combine education and experience to qualify at this level. You must have an combination of specialized experience and higher level graduate education as described above. (TRANSCRIPTS REQUIRED). You will be rated on the following Competencies for this position: Communication Research Standards 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. Note: A full year of work is considered to be 35-40 hours of work per week. Part-time experience will be credited on the basis of time actually spent in appropriate activities. Applicants wishing to receive credit for such experience must indicate clearly the nature of their duties and responsibilities in each position and the number of hours a week spent in such employment. Physical Requirements: The work requires mobility and relative physical efforts may be requires. Manual dexterity is required in operation of personal computer and other office equipment. For more information on these qualification standards, please visit the United States Office of Personnel Management's website at https://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. Note: Only education or degrees recognized by the U.S. Department of Education from accredited colleges, universities, schools, or institutions may be used to qualify for Federal employment. You can verify your education here: http://ope.ed.gov/accreditation/. If you are using foreign education to meet qualification requirements, you must send a Certificate of Foreign Equivalency with your transcript in order to receive credit for that education. For further information, visit: https://sites.ed.gov/international/recognition-of-foreign-qualifications/. Additional Information This job opportunity announcement may be used to fill additional vacancies. Pursuant to VHA Directive 1193.01, VHA health care personnel (HCP) are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 subject to such accommodations as required by law (i.e., medical, religious or pregnancy). VHA HCPs do not include remote workers who only infrequently enter VHA locations. If selected, you will be required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and submit documentation of proof of vaccination before your start date. The agency will provide additional information regarding what information or documentation will be needed and how you can request a legally required accommodation from this requirement using the reasonable accommodation process. 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. 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. For more information about the Act and the complaint process, visit Human Resources and Administration/Operations, Security, and Preparedness (HRA/OSP) at The Fair Chance Act.