TRAINING AND CURRICULUM SPECIALIST

Summary

The mission of the United States Air Force is: To fly, fight, and win...Airpower anytime, anywhere. To achieve that mission, the Air Force has a vision of Global Vigilance, Global Reach and Global Power. That vision orbits around three core competencies: Developing Airmen, Technology-to-Warfighting and Integrating Operations. Core competencies and distinctive capabilities are based on a shared commitment to three core values -- integrity first, service before self, and excellence in all we do.

Duties

• SUMMARY The primary purpose of this position is to serve as the early childhood education specialist or youth development specialist for child and youth programs including child development centers, family childcare, school-age, youth programs, and unique childcare programs. DUTIES Oversees curricula for child development centers, family childcare programs, school-age, youth programs and other unique children's programs. Creates a work environment that supports ongoing professional development and continuous quality improvement through observation, coaching, mentoring, collaborative learning, training and reflective practice. Supports children who may have special needs or complex behaviors. Develops plans to improve overall operations, correct identified deficiencies, and enhance developmental programsand services. Represents all programs with a variety of installation and functional area organizations.

Qualifications

In order to qualify, you must meet the specialized experience requirements described in the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) Qualification Standards for General Schedule Positions, Professional and Scientific Positions to include the Individual Occupational Requirements (IOR) for the GS-1701, General Education and Training Series. BASIC REQUIREMENT OR INDIVIDUAL OCCUPATIONAL REQUIREMENT: Applicants must have a Degree: that included or was supplemented by major study in Child Development or Early Childhood Education. NOTE: You MUST submit a copy of your transcripts. OR COMBINATION OF EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE: -- Courses equivalent to a major in Child Development or Early Childhood education, plus appropriate experience or additional course work that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study described above. NOTE: You MUST submit a copy of your transcripts. AND In addition to meeting the basic requirement above, to qualify for this position you must also meet the qualification requirements listed below: SPECIALIZED EXPERIENCE: Applicants must have at least one (1) year of specialized experience at the next lower grade GS-07, or equivalent in other pay systems. Examples of specialized experience includes 1) professional knowledge of the principles, theories, concepts, and practices of early childhood development and youth development encompassing infant through school-age, youth and teens and child and youth development theories, methodology, and practices; 2) knowledge of childcare regulation requirements and policies; 3) skill in developing curricula which supports physical, emotional, social, cognitive development of children and youth and skill in developing supports that accommodate children with special needs and children with challenging behaviors; 4) skill in developing, adapting, and providing training to staff members, volunteers, family child care providers and parents, as well as food service and administrative staff; 5) skill in the administration and interpretation of the environmental, program, and child abuse probability assessments; 6) the ability to effectively communicate, both orally and in writing. OR EDUCATION: Applicants must have successfully completed two (2) years of progressively higher-level graduate education leading to a master's degree or master's or equivalent graduate degree in Child Development or Early Childhood Education. NOTE: You MUST submit a copy of your transcripts. OR COMBINATION OF EXPERIENCE AND EDUCATION: A combination of education and experience may be used to qualify for this position as long as the computed percentage of the requirements is at least 100%. NOTE: You MUST submit a copy of your transcripts. FEDERAL TIME-IN-GRADE (TIG) REQUIREMENT FOR GENERAL SCHEDULE (GS) POSITIONS: Merit promotion applicants must meet applicable time-in­-grade requirements to be considered eligible. One year at the GS-07 level is required to meet the time-in-grade requirements for the GS-09 level. TIG applies if you are in a current GS position or held a GS position within the previous 52 weeks. NOTE: Applicants applying as VEOA candidates who are current GS civil service employees or are prior GS civil service employees within the past 52 weeks must also meet time-in-grade requirements. KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS AND ABILITIES (KSAs): Your qualifications will be evaluated on the basis of your level of knowledge, skills, abilities and/or competencies in the following areas: 1. Professional knowledge of the principles, theories, concepts, and practices of early childhood development and youth development encompassing infant through school-age, youth and teens and child and youth development theories, methodology, and practices. 2. Knowledge of child care regulation requirements and policies. 3. Skill in developing curricula which supports physical, emotional, social, cognitive development of children and youth.Skill in developing supports that accommodate children with special needs and children with challenging behaviors. 4. Skill in developing, adapting, and providing training to staff members, volunteers, family child care providers and parents, as well as food service and administrative staff. 5. Skill in the administration and interpretation of the environmental, program, and child abuse probability assessments. 6. Ability to effectively communicate, both orally and in writing. PART-TIME OR UNPAID EXPERIENCE: Credit will be given for appropriate unpaid and or part-time work. You must clearly identify the duties and responsibilities in each position held and the total number of hours per week. VOLUNTEER WORK EXPERIENCE: Refers to paid and unpaid experience, including volunteer work done through National Service Programs (i.e., Peace Corps, AmeriCorps) and other organizations (e.g., professional; philanthropic; religious; spiritual; community; student and social). Volunteer work helps build critical competencies, knowledge and skills that can provide valuable training and experience that translates directly to paid employment. You will receive credit for all qualifying experience, including volunteer experience.

Education

IF USING EDUCATION TO QUALIFY: If position has a positive degree requirement or education forms the basis for qualifications, you MUST submit transcripts with the application. Official transcripts are not required at the time of application; however, if position has a positive degree requirement, qualifying based on education alone or in combination with experience, transcripts must be verified prior to appointment. An accrediting institution recognized by the U.S. Department of Education must accredit education. Click here to check accreditation. FOREIGN EDUCATION: Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the requirements. You must show proof the education credentials have been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education program. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. *******************ADDITIONAL INFORMATION ON ELIGIBILITIES AND REQUIRED DOCUMENTS******************* Click here to view the AF Civilian Employment Eligibility Guide: *******************ADDITIONAL INFORMATION FOR ACTIVE-DUTY SERVICES MEMBERS******************* ACTIVE-DUTY SERVICE MEMBERS: The VOW Act requires federal agencies to treat an eligible active-duty service member as a veteran, disabled veteran, and preference eligible (as applicable) when applying for civil service positions before the effective release or discharge date. Appointment of military members before the release or discharge date is permissible if the member is on terminal leave. At the time the active-duty member applies for a civil position, he or she must submit a "certification" memo in lieu of a DD-Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty. Active-duty members applying for a civil service position without submitting a valid certification memo or DD-Form 214 with their application will render the member ineligible for the position. The certification memo must originate from the member's military service branch on official letterhead and contain the following: Name/Rank/Grade of Service Member Branch of Armed Forces Dates of Active Service (Start and End Date(s) Expected Date of Discharge/Release from Active Duty Terminal leave start date (if applicable) Expected character of service (honorable or general) and type of separation (i.e. separation or retirement) Must be certified within 120 days of anticipated discharge Signature by, or by direction of the adjutant, personnel office, unit commander, or higher headquarters commander. Note: The VOW Act provides tentative preference. If appointed, a DD Form-214 must be submitted upon receipt. ADDITIONAL INFORMATION CONCERNING PCS: When job announcements indicate PCS costs are authorized, overseas allowances may be authorized in accordance with Department of State Standardized Regulation (DSSR) and any applicable Federal Overseas Regulations. Selectees who physically reside permanently in the U.S., the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or Northern Mariana Islands, and the Possessions of the U.S., during the entire recruitment process (application, selection, and acceptance of a formal job offer) and selected for employment in the foreign area are eligible to receive certain foreign area benefits such as: Living Quarters Allowance (LQA) or government quarters, Post Allowance, Home Leave, etc. (subject to approval). Selectees who physically reside outside the U.S., the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico or Northern Mariana Islands, and the Possessions of the U.S., during any step of the recruitment process (application, selection, and acceptance of a formal job offer) will have foreign area benefits eligibility be determined on a case-by-case basis.

How to apply

Please read the entire announcement and all instructions before starting the application. To apply and be considered for this position, you must complete all required questionnaires, assessments and required documentation as specified in the How to Apply and Required Documents section. The complete application package must be submitted by 11:59 PM (ET) on 09/21/2026, closing date of the announcement to receive consideration. The application process is as follows: To preview the Application Questionnaire, please click the following link: https://apply.usastaffing.gov/ViewQuestionnaire/13064233 Click the Apply Online button. Answer the questions presented in the application and attach all necessary supporting documentation Click the Submit Application button prior to 11:59PM (ET) on the announcement closing date, 09/21/2026 Your Resume. If you submit more than one resume, only the most recent will be reviewed. The "most recent" is considered the resume with the latest timestamp. Resumes may not exceed two pages. The two-page resume ensures the most relevant experience is reviewed and considered, which is a common practice in both the public and private sectors. Resumes exceeding two pages will be removed from consideration. Additional information on how to complete or update your resume may be located here. For qualification determination your resume must contain hours worked per week and dates of employment (i.e., month/year to month/year or month/year to present). If your resume does not contain this information, your application may be marked as insufficient, and you will not receive consideration for this position. If you are a current Federal employee or previous Federal employee, provide your pay plan, series and grade, i.e. GS-0301-09. Current Federal Civilian Employees may list any relevant performance related rating (given within the last three years) and/or incentive awards in your resume. Do NOT include photographs, inappropriate material, inappropriate content, nor personal information such as age, gender, religion, social security number, etc., on your resume. If the resume you submit contains such information you will not be considered for this vacancy. Your name, first and last, MUST be included on your resume. 5. A complete Application Questionnaire 6. Additional Required Documents (see Required Documents section). Ensure all submitted documents contain your full name. 7. Help recruiters find you. Make your resume and profile searchable, which means recruiters may contact you about possible jobs. Additional information may be located here. 8. If you are required to complete any USA Hire Assessments, you will be notified after submitting your application. The notification will be provided in your application submission screen and via email. The notification will include your unique assessment access link to the USA Hire system and the completion deadline. Additionally, in USAJOBs you can click "Track this application" to return to your assessment completion notice. 9. Access USA Hire using your unique assessment link. Access is granted through your USAJOBS login credentials. 10. Review all instructions prior to beginning your assessments. You will have the opportunity to request a testing accommodation before beginning the assessments should you have a disability covered under the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended. 11. Set aside at least 3 hours to take the USA Hire assessments; however, most applicants complete the assessments in less time. If you need to stop the assessments and continue later, you can re-use your unique assessment link. 12. Your responses to the USA Hire Assessments will be reused for one year (in most cases) from the date you complete an assessment. If future applications you submit require completion of the same assessments, your responses will be automatically reused. Visit the USA Hire Applicant Resource Center for practice assessments and assessment preparation resources click here To update your application, including supporting documentation: During the announcement open period, return to your USAJOBS account, find your application record, and click Edit my application. This option will no longer be available once the announcement has closed. To view the announcement status or your application status click here. Your application status page is where you can view your application status, USA Hire assessment completion status, and review your notifications sent by the hiring agency regarding your application. Human Resources WILL NOT modify or change any answers submitted by an applicant.