Exec Role Descriptions

DUSVO Executive Committee 2020-21 Interested in being on the Exec?

The DUSVO Exec exists to promote the work of DUSVO, which oversees around 40 volunteering projects and has been the leading student volunteering organisation since 1989.

It intends to encourage student participation by organising many activities to publicise the work of student volunteers. The Exec is united in working towards developing DUSVO’s reputation and scope throughout the University and city.

While each position has a separate list of responsibilities, the Exec works together to achieve many of its goals.

Being on the executive committee is about influencing the future of DUSVO and making the important decisions on where the most need is in the community, were the money should be allocated and how DUSVO can attract even more students, with around 2000 students already volunteering.

As part of the exec you will influence which new projects are set up and what events happen throughout the year.

Each member of the Exec is also given a staff mentor who will support their development throughout their tenure. This document should give you a little bit more info about all of the roles.

How to Apply: please email an A4 manifesto to student.volunteering@durham.ac.uk by 9am on Friday 6th March. It should detail your experience, your ideas and why you would like the role.

After submitting a manifesto, you will be required to attend the AGM on Tuesday 10th March from 6-8pm and do a hust (up to 3 minutes) to persuade us why you would be great for the role and why members should vote for you. Voting will open later that evening.

President Fundraising and Sponsorship Officer

Events Officer

VicePresident

DUSVO Executive Committee

Environment and Sustainability Projects Chair

Social Inclusion and Complex Needs Projects Chair

Education Projects Chair

President The President is responsible for the organisation of the Executive Committee - chairing weekly Exec meetings, and meeting with individual Exec members regularly to discuss their achievements.

This position also requires significant interaction with the sabbatical officer and other staff members including the Student Volunteering and Community Projects Manager, as well as with external organisations. As DUSVO is a student-led organisation, it is important that the President (with the backing of the Exec) is at the forefront of all major decisions within student volunteering.

Priyanka is our current President.

Working closely with the sabbatical officers, the President coordinates DUSVO’s direction at a high level, relating the organisation’s vision and actions to the student body, local community and University management. A good understanding of DUSVO is essential for this role.

Responsibilities:  Meet with members of the Exec to maintain a guide on the direction of its activities and support them where needed.  Chair Exec meetings on a weekly basis.  Meet with DUSVO staff regularly to form the direction and policy of the organisation.  Work with other members of the exec to produce a year plan.  Represent DUSVO to the student community and seek new opportunities.

The current President is Priyanka Vanama-Rathna so if you have any questions about the role then don’t hesitate to get in touch with her on president.sca@durham.ac.uk.

Vice President The Vice President’s key responsibility is the image of DUSVO and its promotion to internal and external sources. The VP will take the lead on developing DUSVO’s cross-University branding, starting with the production of the Rough Guide during the summer. With the support of the office and Student Executive Committee, the VP will use advertising, the website, Facebook, student newspapers and other forms of media to spread the work of DUSVO. In addition, the Vice President will work closely with the President and chair meetings in the President’s absence.

Responsibilities: Pachi is our current VP.  Maintain and create streams of communication between central DUSVO and the student community, through various internal communication channels.  Meet regularly with the office to make them aware of changes needed to website.  Work with project coordinators to produce the rough guide.  Take responsibility for enhancing and developing DUSVO’s image amongst the student community.  Produce innovative marketing strategies for DUSVO’s projects in order to boost participation.  Attend weekly Exec meetings.

The current VP is Pachi Cervera-de-la-Cruz so if you have any questions about the role then don’t hesitate to get in touch with her on vice-president.sca@durham.ac.uk .

Project Chairs: - Education - Social Inclusion and Complex Needs - Environment and Sustainability The project chairs are responsible for overseeing the projects that fall under their respective headings ensuring that they are all running smoothly. They will act as the channel of communication between the Project Leaders and Exec.

They will be responsible for meeting the outreach needs of their projects – establishing partnerships/relationships with local organisations in response to projects being over capacity, wishing to expand, or wishing to alter, as well as consider the scope for creating new projects.

They will also be responsible for ensuring projects are adequately publicised both internally and externally.

Responsibilities:     

Hold group meetings with respective cluster of Project Leaders to discuss their progress, outreach and publicity needs and co-develop strategies to meet these.

Carry out outreach work, by contacting and meeting with relevant community organisations/service providers to develop existing projects and signpost new community contacts to office staff in order to develop new projects.

Assist in Project Leader’s publicity needs, by advising and signposting them to the correct channels for publicity.

Work closely with the Sabbatical Officer and Exec to ensure all projects are running smoothly and to overcome any problems.

Attend weekly Exec meetings

Our current Project Chairs have different titles and the Environment and Sustainability post will be new for 2020/21. Our Sport projects will come under Social Inclusion and Complex Needs, with some of these going under the new Environment and Sustainability role.

Please see the details of our current chairs below and contact them if you have any questions!

Adam Carruthers Education and Environment Project Chair education.sca@durham.ac.uk

Sarah McNally Social Inclusion and Complex Needs Project Chair inclusive.outreach@durham.ac.uk

Lottie Brand Sports Project Chair sports.outreach@durham.ac.uk

Events Officer The Events Officer is responsible for organising the various major events which DUSVO holds throughout the year. A number of regular annual events need coordination alongside new social and fundraising events, which the Fundraising Officer mainly oversees. The Events Officer works closely with other members of the Exec to make these events, effective, well-publicised and profitable. The Events Officer can form a committee and chair Events meetings.

Responsibilities:      

Organise the regular DUSVO events effectively from production of an events calendar produced with input from Hazel is our current Events the rest of the exec.

Officer.

Suggest and research ideas for new events to publicise and fundraise for DUSVO. Organise social events, for the Exec, project leaders and other DUSVO groups.

Work with other members of the Exec, especially the Fundraising Officer and VicePresident, to ensure that events are properly publicised and organised.

Work with the President, relevant staff and representatives from participating colleges to organise the annual Durham University Volunteer Awards.

Attend weekly Exec meetings

Fundraising and Sponsorship Officer Responsible for organising smaller events and fundraising events on and around Durham campus as well as any other events that may occur throughout the academic year. The Fundraising and Sponsorship Officer will be responsible for co-managing the Events Committee to help increase DUSVO’s publicity exposure and raise money for DUSVO’s projects whilst also seeking sponsorship from local businesses.

Responsibilities:  

Organise events including fundraisers, socials and ‘one-off’ volunteering events.

Use various forms of media, such as Facebook, email, student publications and others to promote DUSVO fundraising activities.

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Suggest and research ideas for new events to publicise and fundraise for DUSVO.

   

Seek as much sponsorship for DUSVO and its events.

Organise social events for the DUSVO students.

Attend weekly Exec meetings.

Develop ideas of how to engage DUSVO alumni.

We do not currently have someone in this position so if you have any questions, please contact our President, Priyanka, on president.sca@durham.ac.uk.