Curriculum Vitae

EDUCATION

Ohio University, School of Visual Communication, Athens, Ohio

August 2023 to present

Jim Koenigsaecker is a graduate student studying visual communication with an emphasis on documentary filmmaking as the Knight Fellow on the Ohio University campus.

Harvard Business School, Executive Education Program, Boston, Massachusetts

July 2003 and July 2005

Jim Koenigsaecker studied management by participating in 36 case studies with renowned faculty and senior managers from around the world on the Harvard Business School campus.

Ohio University, E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, Athens, Ohio

March 1994

Jim Koenigsaecker studied a liberal arts curriculum as the Carr Van Anda Scholar on the Ohio University campus and earned a Bachelor of Science in Journalism.

  • Interned at The Plain Dealer newspaper in Cleveland, Ohio; The State Journal Register newspaper in Springfield, Illinois; and for Illinois House Leader, Lee Daniels

  • Assistant editor of the student newspaper, The Post

  • Participated in the School of Visual Communication field school in Edinburgh, Scotland

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Independent, Documentary Photographer and Filmmaker, June 1986 to present

Jim Koenigsaecker has shot countless editorial assignments around the world on a wide range of topics for newspapers, magazines and wire services starting with the Quad-City Times newspaper in his home town of Davenport, Iowa and including the Associated Press wire service in New York, New York, Columbus Dispatch newspaper in Columbus, Ohio and Chicago Tribune newspaper in Chicago, Illinois. These days Jim mostly shoots pro bono commissions for non-governmental organizations such as the Safari Doctors in Lamu, Kenya.

Innovations Housing, Inc., Sacramento, California

Founder and Chief Executive Officer, July 2008 to June 2023 

Innovations Housing is a non-governmental organization with the charitable purpose to protect and foster natural and human habitats for living, working and playing with a special focus on the needs of the economically disadvantaged. The organization has helped hundreds of people in Northern California and East Africa by developing and maintaining numerous projects including:

  • Eight affordable housing projects in Northern California 

  • Two community centres in slums in Nairobi, Kenya that provide education, healthcare and hope to some of the least fortunate people in the world

  • A primary school in the village of Kyebando, Uganda to which the organization provides full-ride scholarships for about 200 students per year

  • A social enterprise that purchased coffee from farmers in East Africa at fair-trade prices and sold it to people in Northern California

  • A program to improve and test the skills of rangers who protect the iconic wildlife and ecosystem of East Africa

  • Numerous photographic advocacy projects to promote and advance the organization’s other projects

Jim Koenigsaecker’s responsibilities included strategic planning, budgeting, fundraising, managing an investment portfolio, marketing, public relations and lobbying. Jim worked directly with the people the organization served and coordinated the efforts of the organization’s volunteers, consultants and other partners.

Habitat for Humanity Shasta Cascade, Inc., Redding, California

Chief Executive Officer, August 2002 to August 2018

Habitat for Humanity Shasta Cascade was a nonprofit organization dedicated to building affordable housing using a self-help model. During Jim Koenigsaecker’s tenure, the organization built 12 affordable homes in Northern California for low-income families.

The E.W. Scripps Company, Inc., Cincinnati, Ohio

Journalist / Editor, March 1994 to August 2002

The E.W. Scripps Company was a diverse media concern with interests in newspaper publishing, television broadcasting, licensing and syndication. As a journalist, Jim Koenigsaecker covered everything from the White House to the Olympic Games. As an editor, Jim led the reorganization of a newspaper and the start up of an international news service. During Jim’s time with the company he was posted at Scripps Howard News Service in Washington, D.C.; the Post-Herald newspaper in Birmingham, Alabama; the Press Journal newspaper in Vero Beach, Florida; and the Record Searchlight newspaper in Redding, California.

PHOTOGRAPHIC EXHIBITIONS

Jim Koenigsaecker’s photographs have been exhibited in several galleries including:

  • Cleveland Photo Fest, Cleveland, Ohio, September 2023

  • Solo retrospective in the Schooner Center at Ohio University, Athens, Ohio, March 2023

  • The Dairy Barn Arts Center, Athens, Ohio, October 2018, October 2020 and October 2022

  • Viewpoint Photographic Art Center, Sacramento, California, July 2019 and July 2020

  • Sony Gallery, New York, New York, January 2019

Adventures

Jim Koenigsaecker has been on numerous adventures including:

  • Flying his 1967 Cessna 150G airplane solo across the United States, May 2023

  • Driving his 1997 Land Rover Defender 90 truck across Kenya, August 2022

  • Running the Lewa Marathon in Kenya, June 2017

  • Climbing Mt. Kenya in Kenya, August 2011 and February 2015

  • Climbing Mt. Shasta in California, July 2006 and March 2007

  • Riding his 1969 BMW R75/5 motorcycle solo across the United States, December 2000

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT

Jim Koenigsaecker has served on several boards and committees including:

  • US Bank Advisory Board

  • Citizens for Smart Growth, a grass-roots political action committee

REFERENCES

Available upon request