Natural Resource Specialist - Tools

Natural Resource Specialist - Tools

Washington,DC

Wage/Hr:$65.00Hours/Week:40Minimum Age:55

Disclaimer: This is not a federal position. This role is offered through a partnership agreement and does not constitute an NRCS hiring action.

This position is a non-federal role funded through an existing agreement between NRCS and NEW Solutions. The enrollee will provide direct support to farmers and landowners, enabling the implementation of conservation practices on the ground. This role contributes to NRCS's mission by enhancing capacity in field offices and ensuring timely assistance to producers. It is designed to free up NRCS staff for emergency and high-priority responses, not to replace federal staff.

This role helps ensure continued progress on conservation planning, practice implementation, and technical assistance, especially in high-demand or disaster-affected areas. It aligns with the Administration's priorities for farmer-first, field-facing, and partner-enabled capacity expansion.

For over 25 years, National Experienced Workforce Solutions (NEW Solutions) has specialized in connecting experienced workers (ages 55+) with full-time and part-time job opportunities that support the critical missions of Federal Agencies across the United States.

NEW Solutions connects experienced workers (ages 55+) with the Natural Resources Conservation Services (NRCS). These are experienced professionals who provide technical and professional assistance to the Department of Agriculture for the Agriculture Conservation Experienced Services (ACES) Program.

Benefits: Paid Health Insurance Premium for positions budgeted at 60+ hours per pay period, Accrued Vacation and Sick Leave, Paid Federal Holidays, and optional Vision and Dental Insurance available for positions budgeted at 35+ hours per pay period.

Positions listed here do not guarantee employment for any definite period. Enrollment in the Experienced Worker Programs administered by NEW Solutions is temporary. The enrollment relationship between NEW Solutions and the Enrollee is an ?at-will? relationship. This means that an Enrollee is free to terminate enrollment at any time during the enrollment period, and NEW Solutions and the Agency have the right to terminate the relationship with the Enrollee.

PLEASE NOTE: An ?ACES Enrollee? is not a federal employee, nor an employee of NEW Solutions. An ?ACES Enrollee? is a participant in a grant program established through a Cooperative Agreement funded by the USDA-NRCS and administered by NEW Solutions.

This opportunity applies to applicants legally eligible to work in the United States.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 20 year(s) of experience in with NRCS conservation planning, program delivery policies, and Farm Bill implementation software and documentation of business needs for NRCS development efforts. OR BA/BS Degree in Agriculture, Conservation, Natural Resources and Environment, or related fields.
• Valid State Driver's License.
• Must have adequate organizational, technical, programmatic and interpersonal communication skills and experience to independently assist, organize and help oversee the gathering of business needs, testing, creating requirements, developing and delivering training materials.
• Experience required with Windows, MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint
• Other: AWS
• Knowledge of Conservation Desktop, Protracts, Conservation Assessment and Ranking Tool, Engineering Field Tools, and Payment Schedule Application.

Duties

• Work will be performed in support of NRCS business tools modernization efforts. Capture business needs to directly support the implementation of NRCS programs and other authorities to integrate, streamline, and modernize field and national level tools and processes, customer access, and public facing conservation support. Gather needs, analysis alternatives, organization of NRCS priorities, assist with testing, and the development and delivery of training and other support materials.
• Provide technical and operational support gathering business needs and requirements for the delivery of conservation deliverables through NRCS program and other authorities. The work gathering business needs will include direct program enrollments, conservation planning, internal and integrated resource information and analysis tools, customer facing communications and site-specific system outputs, as well as public facing tools and information. This involves working closely with NRCS technical and program subject matter experts. 60%
• Testing and Training. Provide support and organization for field concept, user acceptance, and other business testing to include gathering and confirmation of meeting business need to support the delivery of conservation programs and the field and national level, development of test scripts, identification of needed testing data, capture of results and actions needed to finalize testing, and communications of results from the various types of testing. Develop training materials and resources to support the rollout and on-going user experience for NRCS staff, customers, and the public. 30%
• Provide analysis, options, and recommendations to NRCS Modernization Team Leadership regarding the staging, consolidation, and future availability of existing agency conservation planning, resource inventory, support, and analysis tools to optimize customer service and field experience. 10%

Other:

• Travel

Requirements

• In person working sessions, field testing, field facing training.

• Overnight travel: up to 2-3 times a quarter

• Air travel anticipated: up to 2-3 times a quarter

• Physical requirements: Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

• NEW Solutions is committed to promoting equal opportunity and to an environment free from discrimination and harassment in any form administering Experienced Worker Programs under cooperative agreements with federal agencies. It is NEW Solutions' policy to comply with all applicable laws that provide equal opportunity and to prohibit unlawful discrimination in enrolling participants in the federal programs.