CULTURE COORDINATOR
As a Culture Coordinator, you are responsible for the cultural aspect of the operation. You are involved in organizing activities with a cultural focus for students and you contribute to the cultural policy of the city of Leuven and KU Leuven. You give students a voice in various meetings, such as the Board of Directors (RvB) and General Assembly (AV) of Arts Center STUK and KU[N]ST Leuven.
WHAT KIND OF PROFILE ARE WE LOOKING FOR?
You are interested in culture in the broad sense: art, theater, poetry, and language... You are capable of leading a team. You communicate quickly and transparently. You are willing to commit a year as a volunteer within LOKO. You are good at taking initiative and can work independently.
TIME ALLOCATION
You coordinate the culture department of LOKO. You plan, lead, organize, and evaluate events such as Movies@LOKation, Ithaka, and the Inter-Faculty Theater Festival! In addition to events, you encourage the faculty circles to expand their cultural offerings and you support them in this. You unite the circle representatives in the working meeting. You coordinate the volunteers, student workers, and interns who help with the various events. You guide and support the relevant staff member(s). Finally, you monitor the cultural policy of the city of Leuven and KU Leuven and help shape it.
MEETINGS
As a coordinator at LOKO, you are also expected to attend a number of meetings. The number of meetings may seem quite extensive. In practice, they are usually well spread out and it all works out fine. If you can't make it once, that's not a disaster. We are all volunteers among ourselves.
- WORK MEETING (WM) CULTURE
As a coordinator, you chair the work meeting of your department. The WM Culture takes place about twice per semester. At the WM, representatives from student circles of the same interest domain come together. You discuss the organization of events and check representation matters with like-minded individuals before bringing them to the WM Student Policy.
- DAILY BOARD (DaBu)
As a member of the DaBu, you participate in the meetings. These occur on average once a week. In these meetings, you address the more practical and day-to-day operations of LOKO: from changes in sub-budgets to discussing small and large problems and challenges for the team.
- BOARD OF DIRECTORS (BoD)
From time to time, a Board of Directors meeting also takes place. Together with some more experienced (former) LOKO board members, you discuss long-term files and larger budget changes. It's also important to know that not every DaBu member sits on the BoD, so it may be that you will not have to attend this meeting.
- GENERAL OFFICE (GO)
You also sit on the General Bureau. Here, all volunteers from LOKO - DaBu and representatives, possibly also project staff - come together and discuss the progress made in the past period. Additionally, you prepare files and notes for the AB that will then be presented to the AV. The AB takes place biweekly during the school weeks and is usually followed by a small team-building activity: the après-AB.
- GENERAL MEETING (AV) & WORK MEETING (WV) STUDENT POLICY
Alternating with the AB, the General Meeting & Work Meeting Student Policy – AV & WV Student Policy - takes place biweekly on Friday evenings. You support, along with the other DaBu members, the chairperson where needed. At the AV, board matters concerning the internal organization of LOKO are discussed, while at the WV Student Policy we address representation issues. All student representatives from the student circles come together to take positions and make decisions on matters that concern their students. As the culture coordinator, you are needed to propose a specific agenda item or to mentally support your LOKO colleagues. After the AV/WV, we head to a fakbar to get to know each other better!
- MANDATE MEETINGS
Depending on your role, you are also part of those meetings for which you are specifically elected. For Culture, these are:
- Board of Directors (RvB) & General Meeting (AV) ITEM
In the Board of Directors STUK, you sit together with a representative and you represent the opinion of the students. Moreover, you are a member of the General Assembly of Arts Center STUK. You follow the practical and artistic operations of this cultural house, which gives you a lot of insight into what is happening in an important arts center. For example, you discuss budgets, grant applications, information about building maintenance, but you also think along about a possible program change or about co-production. - Culture Committee KU Leuven
The Culture Committee directs the cultural events at KU Leuven and provides advice on cultural policy and budget spending. They closely monitor the cultural events and a permanent evaluation takes place so that adjustments can be made when necessary. They aim to stimulate cultural activities among the student population. The Culture Committee annually supports a number of cultural initiatives of various kinds. The Culture Committee consists of subcommittees such as the Committee for Contemporary Art, the Committee for Academic Heritage, and the Committee for Colonial Past and Colonial Heritage. The Committees meet several times per semester. - KU[N]ST Leuven
KU[N]ST Leuven vzw is an initiative of the city of Leuven and KU Leuven. The organization sets up a city-wide project every two years around a specific theme. The highlight of the city project is always an international loan exhibition at M Leuven. In parallel with the exhibition, KU[N]ST Leuven collaborates with other players from the cultural, scientific, and tourism fields to develop a broad program that approaches the theme from different perspectives and disciplines. - Arts Council
The Arts Council is one of the councils of the city of Leuven, which advises the municipal cultural council. The Council consists of experts in the arts and representatives of professional arts organizations and formal arts educational institutions such as M Leuven, 30CC, Nieuwstedelijk, Cas-co, and so on. Starting next academic year (2023-2024), this council will be replaced by the cultural network and an advisory council. Through that cultural network, it will be possible to connect with other cultural players in Leuven.
WHAT IS EXPECTED OF YOU?
You follow the relevant meetings and prepare for them. In addition, you have the ultimate responsibility for the cultural events of LOKO. You manage staff, volunteers, and interns. As a board member, you participate in the operation and management of LOKO and commit to also assist in other departments where and when needed.
WHAT DO YOU GET IN RETURN?
The LOKO team and the students/partners you work with create a young and appreciative environment. You get the chance to learn to hold meetings and collaborate, as well as to meet many interesting people and network within the cultural world. You gain experience in organizing cultural events. Finally, you have the opportunity to help shape the cultural policy of KU Leuven and the city of Leuven.
PLACES: 1
TEAMMATES
The cultural team usually consists of 1 coordinator and up to 4 representatives. For the events Ithaka and IFTf, there may also be project managers. You work closely with the cultural representatives, any project managers, the staff member(s), and the interns. You receive support from the other DaBu members.
ARE YOU INTERESTED?
You will be put in contact with the current Coordinator of Culture: they will explain to you what the mandate entails and inform you about recent files. Are you convinced? Yay! Then you may submit your application by email to loko@loko.be, consisting of your CV and a motivation letter. As the culture coordinator, you will also draft a vision document, usually in consultation with the rest of the upcoming DaBu. You will then receive the questions you need to prepare for your election. After that, you will go through the election procedure at the General Assembly. Don't worry! It may all sound a bit scary, but you are never alone: the current and upcoming LOKO team will gladly guide you and is always ready to help you.