Communications and Outreach

Committee Name: VCA Communications and Outreach Committee

Type: Standing committee

Chair: Josée Shymanski

Responsible To: The association Board of directors on a monthly basis

Purpose: The Communications Committee, working closely with the association’s executive and committee chairs, manages the VCA’s outward communications and public relations by:

• Developing and publishing content on theVCA website
• Managing the VCA’s social media channels (i.e. Facebook, Instagram, YouTube);
• Coordinating the VCA’s role respecting various community billboards, including the community electronic bulletin board;  and,
• Managing an e-mail subscription list and the electronic newsletter

Timeframes: Year-round; meeting frequency determined by the needs of the committee or as requested by the Board.

Composition of committee: Residents of Vanier and VCA Board Members

Vision

The VCA has a recognizable “style” in look and tone, whether it be website posts, social media, or e-mail communication. Our work helps the VCA with engaging, timely, accessible and welcoming ways of sharing information with our neighbours and members, and the high quality serves to attract new volunteers and members to the VCA.

Mission

To make the VCA’s website and social media a place people turn to for connection and information about their community, what the VCA does, and to help build a larger, more diverse membership (and by extension, Board/Committees.)

Goals and objectives

The Communications and Outreach Committee aims to achieve, but does not limit itself to, the following goals:

1. To keep the content on the VCA website updated as needed.
2. To use social media (i.e Facebook, Instagram)  to increase interaction with the community and membership, by curating/posting on a coordinated, regular schedule (TBD but at least biweekly) on these platforms, in both official languages. This includes responding to messages and routing questions to the appropriate board members as needed.
3. To prepare and distribute a monthly electronic newsletter to members of the VCA.
4. To work closely with the executive to prioritise communications that go to the VCA’s top priorities, and to recruiting new members and Board members.
5. Ad hoc work on other comms/outreach tasks such as bringing the newsletter design more in line with the look of the new website, investigating the possibility of adding another physical bulletin board in Vanier south.

We are determined to improve the reach and presence of the Vanier Community Association by way of our snazzy new website, refreshed social media accounts, revived public billboards and our good old-fashioned newsletter. We want to use these different channels to draw in a large and diverse new group of volunteers, members and board members. Are you into writing, design or recruitment? Do you want to help us ensure that our association is truly for everyone? We’d love to have you join our team!

Join us by dropping in on any meeting or check out our current volunteer needs!