Information Program Coordinator 1

The Department of Natural Resources, Division of Forestry & Fire Protection, is recruiting for a Program Coordinator 1 to be located in Anchorage, Palmer, or Fairbanks.

This position is now open to all applicants.

What You Will Be Doing:  

This position serves as the Information Program Coordinator responsible for planning, developing, coordinating, and overseeing the activities, functions, and major components and projects under the division-wide Information & Outreach Program. This position plays a key role in developing and implementing communication strategies to promote the division's mission, programs, and initiatives. The Information Program Coordinator works independently and plays a pivotal role in promoting transparency, engaging stakeholders, and facilitating communication between the division and the public, media, and other relevant entities. This Program Coordinator will oversee the Wildland Fire PIOs during fire season, ensuring delivery of accurate and timely fire information.

Mission and Values/Culture:  

The Division of Forestry & Fire Protection fosters a mission-driven culture and is responsible for protecting Alaska’s values, including life and property, from wildland fire. The Division works closely with federal, state, and local emergency response agencies and private industry vendors to provide wildland fire management and protection for the State of Alaska. The Fire Program’s information section position is an integral part of building, developing, supporting, and maintaining those relationships.

Benefits of Joining Our Team:  

The successful applicant will be working with a variety of dynamic, public service-oriented people and agencies from across Alaska and at a national level. The very core of our mission is public safety. Being prepared and providing critical information in a timely manner is critical to protecting lives, property, and natural resources. This position will involve some in-state travel and may involve site visits to Alaskan communities to coordinate proactive wildfire planning.  This position offers training and a flexible work schedule and location contingent on assigned tasks and priorities.

The Working Environment You Can Expect:  
This position is offered in Anchorage, Palmer, or Fairbanks. It will work collaboratively with Area Foresters, Area Fire Management Officers, and various Statewide Program Coordinators, both in person and remotely. The position has Statewide responsibilities and oversees coverage to the Alaska Interagency Coordinating Center located in Ft. Wainwright during the fire season (April – September). The environment is mission-oriented and involves collaborative interaction with colleagues in the division, other state agencies, local government, and our federal counterparts in wildland fire management.  

Although this position is primarily office-based, daily physical fitness is encouraged, and a flexible work schedule can be accommodated. Opportunities for field site visits to projects, fire tours, and staff rides are available. If assigned as a member of an Incident Management Team, rustic living in a fast-paced emergency response setting can be expected.  
 
We are looking for a candidate who possesses the following position-specific competencies.  

• Project Management: Knowledge of the principles, methods, or tools for developing, scheduling, coordinating, and managing projects and resources, including monitoring and inspecting costs, work, and contractor performance.
• Communications and Media: Knowledge of the production, communication and dissemination of information and ideas to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media and social media.
• Fire Management: Knowledge of the concepts, principles, and theories of fire management, including the characteristics, behavior, and ecology of fire; methodologies, strategies, and equipment used in prescribed fires; fire detection, prevention, and suppression strategies; and integration of fire with natural resource management.

Click here to learn more about working for the Division of Forestry & Fire Protection.

Minimum Qualifications

Competency-Based Minimum Qualifications Instructions
This job class uses competency-based minimum qualifications. Please ensure your application (through work history, volunteer experience (duties summary), training, education, licenses, certifications, etc.) supports how you have gained the knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors (competencies) and that you possess the minimum required competencies for the job class. 
 
Competency Description           
The competency description(s) listed below have been designed to promote a common understanding of the essential elements of the job class.  They highlight the more general and customary knowledge, skills, abilities (KSAs), tasks, and behaviors used to describe the competency.  They typically list expectations instead of specific tasks and are only used as parameters and guidelines.   A competency’s description is not intended to exclusively define every KSA, task, and behavior needed to meet the competency successfully but rather to provide the manager/agency with a broad reference of options for how an applicant can meet the job expectation.

Qualifications

Any combination of education and/or experience that provides the applicant with competencies in

• Analytical Thinking/Problem Solving: uses a logical, systematic, sequential approach to address problems or opportunities or manage a situation by drawing on one’s knowledge and experience base and calling on other references and resources as necessary.
• Compliance: Knowledge of procedures for assessing, evaluating, and monitoring programs or projects for compliance with Federal laws, regulations, and guidance.
• Decision Making: Makes sound, well-informed, and objective decisions; perceives the impact and implications of decisions; commits to action, even in uncertain situations, to accomplish organizational goals; causes change.
• Planning and Evaluating: Organizes work, sets priorities, and determines resource requirements; determines short- or long-term goals and strategies to achieve them; coordinates with other organizations or parts of the organization to accomplish goals; monitors progress and evaluates outcomes.

Equivalent to those typically gained by:

Training from an accredited college or university in any field and/or progressively responsible experience assisting with planning, coordinating, and implementing administrative controls, work processes, and/or procedures for a program, project, business, or organization.

Special Note: 

“Competencies” means a combination of interrelated knowledge, skills, abilities, and behaviors that enable a person to act effectively in a job or situation.  

“Typically gained by” means the prevalent, usual method of gaining the competencies expected for entry into the job.  

“Training” and “education” are synonyms for the process of acquiring knowledge and skills through instruction. It includes instruction through formal and informal methods (such as classroom, on-line, self-study, and on-the-job), from accredited and unaccredited sources, and long-duration (such as a post-secondary degree) and short-duration (such as a seminar) programs.

“Progressively responsible” means indicating growth and/or advancement in complexity, difficulty, or level of responsibility.

Starting Salaries

Anchorage/Palmer – $2568.75 biweekly

Fairbanks – $2646.00 biweekly

Additional Required Information

** Please read the below information carefully. **

 At the time of the interview, please ensure that you provide the following materials: 

• Cover letter.
• Driver’s license
• Copies of your last two performance evaluations or a letter of reference if evaluations are not available
• Three professional references with current contact information, with at least 1 of them being your most recent supervisor, including name, job title, employer and current phone number (s)
• A copy of any forestry and /or fire-related training certificates

SPECIAL NOTICES

• Requires travel within the state for meetings, conferences, events, and as fire activity increases to regional and area offices located in Fairbanks, Palmer, Delta, Tok, Soldotna, Glenallen, and McGrath.

Application Notice

You can ONLY apply for this position through the Workplace Alaska website or a hardcopy application. Instructions on how to apply with Workplace Alaska may be found on the Workplace Alaska “How to Apply" page. Your application must be submitted by 5:00 p.m. Alaska Standard Time on the closing date.   

Cover Letter

If invited to an interview, you will be required to provide a cover. It should be two to three paragraphs (no longer than one page) and address your knowledge and experience related to the desired position-specific competencies listed above. Your cover letter will serve as a writing sample and will be used to determine which applicants will advance to the interview phase of the recruitment. 

Supplemental Questions

For your application to be evaluated, you must answer the Supplemental Questions.  The State of Alaska (SOA) uses four proficiency levels to measure and describe an applicant’s level of competence in applying certain behaviors, knowledge, skills, and abilities to accomplish a specific task. The four proficiency levels are Mastery, Fluency, Literacy, and Discovery. You must rate your proficiency level for each competency listed in the supplemental questions.

Education

If post-secondary education is required to meet the minimum qualifications, you must fill out the Education section of the application. If you have not obtained a degree, please indicate the units completed. Copies of transcripts are required to verify educational credentials if used to meet the minimum qualifications for a position. 

Special Instructions for Foreign Education

Education completed in foreign colleges or universities may be used to meet the minimum qualifications listed above. If utilizing this education, you must show that the education credentials have been submitted to a private organization that specializes in the interpretation of foreign educational credentials and that such education has been deemed to be at least equivalent to that gained in conventional U.S. education programs; or an accredited U.S. post-secondary institution reports the other institution as one whose transcript is given full value, or full value is given in subject areas applicable to the curricula at the post-secondary institution. It is your responsibility to provide such evidence when applying. 

Work Experience

If using work experience not already documented in your application, also provide the employer’s name, job title, employment dates, and whether full or part-time. Applications will be reviewed to determine whether the responses are supported and minimum qualifications are clearly met. If they are not, the applicant may not advance to the recruitment interview and selection phase. 

Note: Attaching a resume is not an alternative to filling out the application entirely. Noting, "see resume" or any similar response on any portion of your application may lead to a determination that your application is incomplete and removal from consideration for this job posting.  

Bargaining Unit

If you are a current state employee, please mark the union you are a member of at the time of application. Do not complete this question if you are not a current state employee. 

Multiple Locations

This position is being recruited in Anchorage, Palmer, and Fairbanks; the final location is dependent upon the location of the most qualified candidate. There is only ONE position to be filled.  

Driver’s License Requirement

Applicants must possess a valid driver's license. Proof of licensure will be required prior to reporting to duty.  

EEO STATEMENT
The State of Alaska complies with Title I of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Individuals with disabilities who require accommodation, auxiliary aides or services, or alternative communication formats should call 1-800-587-0430 or (907) 465-4095 in Juneau or TTY: Alaska Relay 711 or 1-800-770-8973 or correspond with the Division of Personnel & Labor Relations at P.O. Box 110201, Juneau, AK 99811-0201. The State of Alaska is an equal opportunity employer.

Please be sure to check your junk folder for any messages that may be sent to you about this recruitment. 

Contact Information

Workplace Alaska Application Questions & Assistance

Questions regarding application submission or system operation errors should be directed to the Workplace Alaska hotline at 1-800-587-0430 (toll-free) or (907) 465-4095 if you are in the Juneau area. Requests for information may also be emailed to recruitment.services@alaska.gov.

For assistance with your password, please visit the reset password page.

For specific information about this position, please get in touch with the hiring manager at the following:

Sarah Saarloos

Fire Staff Officer

Phone: 907-301-0971

Email: sarah.saarloos@alaska.gov