DEVA Updates Inside The Park 3-22-2023

[DeathValleyDazed]

There may yet be a bloom in parts of the park. Around the Beatty Cutoff (Now open with 22 pavement patches from Highway 190 to Daylight Pass Road) junction with Daylight Pass Road there is much green with buds so if it warms up they might bloom. 

The Exchange Club in Beatty is transforming with a large steam punk motif surrounding the exterior. Maybe inside too, The artwork is rather impressive and has been in progress for at least two years now.

Tucki Wash displayed a light show on my way back to Furnace Creek.



DVNP has been without a curator for 18 months and they just hired a replacement named Sarah Saxe. She'll be busy. The park has many items and documents curated that are not easily accessed by the public. What we can see without special permit or permission is a the Visitor's Center. 

The Xanterra remodel of Furnace Creek seems to be complete. Unless you visited in years past you'd never know it was any different. The little museum next to the outdoor museum is closed for "remodeling" but it does not look they're serious about this? 

[DeathValleyDazed]

Another update 3-23-2023 Thursday morning detailed survey of The Salt Creek flood damage of August 5, 2023 starting from the top and following the steam bed down. I'll be using this thread to add updates during my visit to the park until I depart next week.  

[Daymoth]

You got quite a treat of gorgeous light!!

Man, I do like mines but open pit ones are just so....awful. I wonder if the hole is a prospect more than an actual mine of a vein?

When you say Sarah is the new curator what do you mean? What does she curate?

Thanks for sharing!

[DeathValleyDazed]

Man, I do like mines but open pit ones are just so....awful. I wonder if the hole is a prospect more than an actual mine of a vein? 

When you say Sarah is the new curator what do you mean? What does she curate?

Boraxo Mine was full production gypsum and you can dig for details here: 
https://www.mindat.org/loc-5571.html

About Sarah's new job as curator, she met this job description:

"Summary: This position is located in Death Valley National Park, in the Division of Resource Management, Cultural Resource Branch. Responsibilities Major Duties include: Manage museum collections, archives, and libraries within a park. Manage museum project contracts, loans, and agreements. Develops guidelines to deal with the more complex or unusual problems, or with novel, undeveloped or controversial aspects of museum collections and their management. Develops strategic plans, work plans and schedules, project statements, deaccession plans, scopes of work, cost estimates and proposals to justify funding requests and accomplish goals. Provide technical support for museum program and mentors volunteers and technician staff members.

Physical Demands: The work requires mental alertness, better than average manual dexterity, and mobility. Although primarily sedentary, inspections and operations evaluations involve activities demanding a certain amount of exertion such as walking, climbing, crawling, lifting of heavy objects, bending, stooping, and reaching. Working with collections can involve prolonged exposure to hazardous materials and equipment; Working with lighting systems, environmental control systems, and alarm systems can involve exposure to electrical current and the use of power tools with physical hazards. The work entails the ability to concentrate for long periods of time.

Working Conditions: Most of the work is performed in an office and storage or laboratory facility. Frequent visits are made to the library, visitor center, and other museums in the park. The incumbent makes occasional field trips to the backcountry. Some travel to other facilities and museums, as well as to training and professional meetings is required. Death Valley National Park is in Nevada and California and contains some of the hottest and driest climates, and lowest elevation in North America while also reaching elevations above 11,000 feet. Death Valley National Park is a superlative desert of humming sand dunes, snow-capped mountains, abandoned mining sites, multicolored rock layers, water-fluted canyons and over 3 million acres of wilderness. It is home to the Timbisha Shoshone people and to plants and animals unique to the harshest desert. Housing in the park may be available at an affordable rate; otherwise, the closest available accommodations are in Pahrump or Beatty, Nevada (both approximately 1 hour away). Children who live in park housing fall within the Death Valley Unified School District and attend school in Shoshone, California.

Come join a tight-knit, hardworking, and fun community in one of the most extreme environments on Earth! "In employing individuals to perform any construction, maintenance, interpretation, or other service in the park, the Secretary (Selecting Official) shall, in so far as practical, give first preference to qualified members of the Tribe": (Timbisha Shoshone Homeland Act, Nov 2000). To receive current preference eligibility, members of the Timbisha Shoshone Tribe must submit a copy (not the original) of the letter certifying their tribal membership. Requirements Conditions of Employment U.S. Citizenship required. Appointment subject to background investigation and favorable adjudication. Meet Selective Service Registration Act requirement for males. Complete the initial online assessment and USAHire Assessment, if required. Selectee will be required to participate in the Direct Deposit Electronics Funds Transfer Program. A selectee receiving a first appointment to the Federal Government (Civil Service) is entitled only to the lowest step of the grade for which selected.
The display of a salary range on this vacancy shall not be construed as granting an entitlement to a higher rate of pay. You will be required to operate a government (or private) motor vehicle as part of your official duties; a valid driver's license is required. You will be required to submit a Motor Vehicle Operator's License and Driving Record. You must also submit (within a State sealed envelope or submitted directly by the State authorities), and at your own expense, all certified driving records from all States that disclose all valid driver's licenses, whether current or past, possessed by you. You will be required to wear a uniform and comply with the National Park Service uniform standards. A uniform allowance will be provided. If you are a new employee in the Federal government, you will be required to complete a one-year probationary period. You may be required to travel overnight away from home. You must obtain a government charge card for travel purposes.

The National Park Service has determined that the duties of this position are suitable for telework and the selectee may be allowed to telework with supervisor approval. Qualifications All qualifications must be met by the closing date of this announcement-05/16/2022-unless otherwise stated in this vacancy announcement. Credit will be given for all appropriate qualifying experience. To receive credit for experience, your resume MUST clearly indicate the nature of the duties and responsibilities for each position, starting and ending dates of employment (month/year), and the resume must reflect full and/or part-time or total number of hours worked (i.e., work 40+ hours a week, rather than indicating full-time). If part-time, the hours must be annotated to be able to pro-rate the amount of qualified specialized experience. To qualify for this position at the GS-11 grade level, you must possess ALL of the following minimum qualifications by close of the announcement: Museum Curator GS-1015, Basic Requirement: Successful completion of at least a 4-year degree in museum work or in an applicable subject-matter field. You must include undergraduate or graduate transcripts. -OR- A combination of education and experience with courses equivalent to a major as shown above, plus appropriate experience or additional education. You must include undergraduate or graduate transcripts as proof of any claimed education. -OR- At least four years of experience that provided knowledge comparable to that normally acquired through the successful completion of the 4-year course of study as shown above. -AND- GS-1015-11 Minimum Qualifications EXPERIENCE: I have one year of specialized experience comparable in scope and responsibility to the GS-09 level in the Federal service (obtained in either the public or private sectors). Specialized experience is experience that equips the applicant with particular knowledge, skills and abilities needed to perform the duties of this position. Experience at this level includes but is not limited to the following: Museum program management and project management of a more complex nature, working independently; Experience in long-term planning and management of museum collections at a park, regional repository, or similar museum facility; Museum database management including ICMS/Re: Discovery or similar programs such as, (PastPerfect, Argus, TMS, etc.); Experience in project planning and management; and Personnel management. This experience must demonstrate a broad knowledge of and experience with applying the theories, principles, practices, and techniques of museum collection management and experience supervising people including assigning and reviewing work and completing appraisals. You must include hours worked per week on your resume. -OR- EDUCATION: Successful completion of at least 3 years of progressively higher level graduate education leading to a Ph.D. or equivalent doctoral degree in a directly related field of study that has provided the knowledge, skills, and abilities necessary to do the work. You must include transcripts. -OR- Successful completion of a combination of specialized experience and graduate level education that when combined equal at least 100% of the minimum qualification requirement for the GS-11 level. You must submit a copy of your transcripts as proof of any claimed education.

Volunteer Experience: 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; religious; 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. ICTAP/CTAP Statement: Current surplus and current or former displaced Federal individuals who have special prior­ity selection rights under the Agency Career Transition Assistance Program (CTAP) or the Interagency Career Transition Assistance Program (ICTAP) must be well qualified for the position to receive consideration for special priority selection. Well qualified means that the applicant meets the following: OPM qualification standards for the position; all selective placement factors, where applicable; special qualifying conditions that OPM has approved for the position, where applicable; is physically qualified with reasonable accommodation, where appropriate to satisfactorily perform the duties of the position upon entry; and is rated by the organization at least at the well qualified level on all competencies.

Education: To qualify based on education, you must submit a legible copy of transcripts from an accredited institution with your name, school name, credit hours, course level, major(s), and grade-point average or class ranking. Transcripts do not need to be official, but if you are selected for this position and you used your education to qualify, you must provide official transcripts before you begin work. If you are using education completed in foreign colleges or universities to meet qualification requirements, you must show that your education credentials have been evaluated by a private organization that specializes in interpretation of foreign education programs and such education has been deemed equivalent to that gained in an accredited U.S. education program; or full credit has been given for the courses at a U.S. accredited college or university. Additional Information For additional information about this position, please contact: Alissa Leavitt-Reynolds, Cultural Resource Manager, Death Valley National Park alissa_leavitt-reynolds@nps.gov A Recruitment Incentive May Be Authorized for a newly selected employee when appointed to a permanent, temporary, or term position. A Federal employee who is transferring to the National Park Service from another component, bureau or Federal agency and who does not meet the conditions under 5 CFR §575.102 is not eligible for a recruitment incentive. A Relocation Incentive May Be Authorized for a Federal employee when the employee must move, as directed by the National Park Service (NPS) either through a management directed reassignment or selection for employment, to a different location at least 50 miles away from the one where his/her position of record held at time of selection is currently located, due to a need of the NPS. A relocation incentive is not the same as a Permanent Change of Station (PCS) move and, as such, may be granted in conjunction with one another. This announcement may be used to fill additional positions if identical vacancies occur within 90 days of the issue date of the referral certificate. Reasonable Accommodation Requests: If you believe you have a disability (i.e., physical or mental), covered by the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended and Americans with Disabilities Act 1990 as amended, that would interfere with completing the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, you will be granted the opportunity to request a reasonable accommodation in your online application. Requests for Reasonable Accommodations for the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments and appropriate supporting documentation for Reasonable Accommodation must be received prior to starting the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. Decisions on requests for Reasonable Accommodations are made on a case-by-case basis. If you meet the minimum qualifications of the position, after notification of the adjudication of your request, you will receive an email invitation to complete the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments. You must complete all assessments within 48 hours of receiving the URL to access the USA Hire Competency Based Assessments, if you received the link after the close of the announcement. To determine if you need a Reasonable Accommodation, please review the Procedures for Requesting a
Reasonable Accommodation for Online Assessments here: https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index...r_USA_Hire
If you are unable to apply online or need to fax a document that you do not have in electronic form, view the following link for information regarding an Alternate Application. Click the following link for more information, https://help.usastaffing.gov/Apply/index...nformation."

Daymoth, let me know if this answers your question. Sorry about the lack of detail and non-specifics. 

[Daymoth]

The have a museum?

[DeathValleyDazed]

They have a museum?

Death Valley National Park maintains a substantial collection of documents, images, and artifacts that is available by appointment only via an online request which must be specific as to intent, purpose, subject matter and time frame so that such material can be prepared by park curators for study. The only items viewable by the general public are at The Furnace Creek Visitors Center which occasionally creates themed displays in addition to the permanent one.

[DeathValleyDazed]

See some vultures, flowers, and photographers in Death Valley.

[Daymoth]

They have a museum?

Death Valley National Park maintains a substantial collection of documents, images, and artifacts that is available by appointment only via an online request which must be specific as to intent, purpose, subject matter and time frame so that such material can be prepared by park curators for study. The only items viewable by the general public are at The Furnace Creek Visitors Center which occasionally creates themed displays in addition to the permanent one.

I had no idea! Thats useful to know!

[DeathValleyDazed]

DEVA Update Sunday March 26, 2023

[MojaveGeek]

I will be curious to see how all the green turns out. We left the park on the 21st (driving over Towne Pass in snow) and although there was tons of green, the flowers were few and far between. A chance to learn about the little blooms, in the absence of the "usual suspects" of phacelia, desert five spot, desert gold, and gravel ghost. The flowers down in Joshua Tree were quite good, however - tradeoff between solitude and blossoms.