Communications: Baker-Kretzmar wants a more accessible students' union

Jacob Baker-Kretzmar is a first-year FYP student and avid photographer.  Since arriving, he has become very involved in school affairs: he helped start The King’s Image Photography Society, was elected to the Finance Committee in early January and worked to reboot the King’s visual arts community.  Now he intends to extent his goals to the KSU as communications vice-president.
The Watch: What do you think is lacking with the communications vice-president position currently, and how do you plan to improve it?
Jacob Baker-Kretzmar: I don’t think there is anything “lacking”, per se.  In terms of ways that I would improve the position, everything Haydn’s doing such a great job with now I want to maintain.  Parts of the position that aren’t as clearly defined, I want to define more clearly and make sure they’re continued.  For example, I want to continue the Council Liveblog.  The Liveblog is an awesome idea that sort of came together by coincidence this year, but I want to really make sure that that’s more clearly set up next year so that it continues.  Just other little things like that, working out the kinks, making sure that everything Haydn has set up and already works so well continues to work so well.
Q: You’ve spent a lot of time this past year on rebooting King’s’ visual art and photography community, what made you switch gears and run for CVP?
JB-K: Well, I guess photography would sort of be the thing that got me involved in the KSU in the first place, because I was so interested in creating a photography society, which we did, and then in working to get the dark room back, which we’re still working on.  And that sort of got me more involved with the KSU and with some other societies like Foreign Film, The Arts Abstract.  I really enjoy that kind of thing, so I’ve sort of made the union a priority this year.  I really just wanted to get more involved, wanted to be able to do more for students than just the few that I was involved with.
Q: What attracted you to the CVP position specifically?
JB-K: Just because of my experience with photography, with societies.  And because I think (CVP) is the one that stood out to me in terms of the others in contrast.  Communicating with people, trying to find new ways to communicate, new ways to make the union more accessible, make communications more clear, more cohesive, that sort of thing.  That really appealed to me as opposed to the roles of the other executives.
Q: Do you think you’ll be better equipped in your mission from within the KSU?

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JB-K: I think I will, yeah.  I think one thing CVP will allow me to do is, like I said, to reach out to more societies, and to work more closely with the student life vice-president to bring the services I’ve been working on this year to more students and to help more societies with that.  I think also in my capacity as a photographer I can really bring that background to the position of communications vice-president, and just let that show through and communicate visually the way that I’m used to.
Q: How would you ideally see King’s’ visual art and photography community revitalized?  What sort of clubs, events or resources would be in place?
JB-K: Well, the dark room has been and is a huge priority for me.  I think it’s really important, and I think we’re able to offer that as a service to King’s students and we’re very, very close to actually doing it.  I want to make sure that that happens. And I guess I just want to provide more resources in terms of being able to come and get help to create more opportunities like that for any kind of visual arts societies.  A friend of mine was actually just talking about designating a space every week for a few hours where people could come in and just make a mess with art.  A lot of people want to paint, and want to do huge things but they can’t in their room.  Having some space like that, which I think is an amazing idea.  One of the things I want to do as CVP is create a cohesive visual for the union, so on posters or marketing material, online you can see it and right away you know ,“that’s KSU”.  At the same time as I want to do that for the KSU I want to make those resources available to societies.  Just to sort of bring together the visual arts community that already exists and the union, and see how they can help each other.