By: Elizabeth Iwunwa
The position of Vice President Communications which once was an executive position has metamorphosed into the post of Director of Communications. By voting on a referendum question click here if you missed it, UPEI students approved the overhaul of the position. After a rigorous selection process, fourth year English major Brenna Doucette has emerged the new Director of Communications. In an interview with the Cadre, she explains that her new role puts her in charge of all media posts and any sort of communication coming out of the UPEISU. This includes updates on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and even Snapchat. She also is now responsible for the bi-weekly newsletter.
 The Director of Communications position is quite different from the Vice President Communications role in that the executive duties of the latter are no longer incorporated into the job description. Said duties included weekly executive meetings, student council meetings, and administrative engagements. With such responsibilities a thing of the past, this leaves ample time to be directed towards actual communications-related issues and priorities.
Doucette has specific plans she hopes to set in motion for the benefit of the UPEISU and the general student body. She describes the first of the three as “pretty foreseeableâ€, and this is redesigning of the Student Union website. The project has gone on for about a year and a half and she intends to hash out offers from design companies to find the most accessible design for the student population. This will aid finding information regarding the UPEISU with ease.
In addition, this role enables her to work closely with the Street Team. This group is responsible for getting information regarding the Student Union out to the “streets†of campus. This is to be achieved by physical handouts and promotions, all in a bid to make the UPEISU more present and visible.
Finally, Doucette’s third priority is a general professionalization and revamping of the chain of communication within the UPEISU. She aims to provide a set of guidelines by which all forms of correspondence leaving the SU can be mirrored to reflect its core values. This will also allow for consistency for those who will fill the position in the future.
In terms of support from the rest of the SU executives, she says “right from day one they were in my office helping me out and answering any questions I had about the position. And that just goes beyond the executive team, the office staff have been that way and it’s been really niceâ€.
President of the UPEISU Dana Kenny thinks the transition has gone on smoothly. He attributes this to both the current Director of Communications Brenna Doucette, and the outgoing Vice President Communications Alex Heighington. He says, “she’s been very flexible having to come in halfway through the school year, but she’s full of energy and has a lot of great ideasâ€.