National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals selects Jason Dunn Sr. as new executive director

The National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP) announced its appointment of Jason Dunn, Sr. to serve as its new Executive Director. The post National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals selects Jason Dunn Sr. as new executive director appeared first on The Cincinnati Herald.

National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals selects Jason Dunn Sr. as new executive director

Dunn to leave his position at Visit Cincy to lead national organization

By L.A.I. Communications

@laicommunications.com

ALEXANDRIA, Va. – The National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP) announced its appointment of Jason Dunn, Sr. to serve as its new Executive Director.

Founded in 1983, NCBMP is a non-profit organization that seeks to educate and empower Black Hospitality professionals and all proponents of equity who support or work with Black meetings and events. The hiring of Mr. Dunn to lead the national organization will take this member-based association to new heights, NCBMP officials said.

“We’re elated to announce Jason Dunn  Sr. as our national Executive Director. Knowing that the authenticity of Jason’s leadership, the passion in which he builds his relationships, and his ability to move the moral consciousness of all around him, aligns with our founders’ vision and truly makes him the best person for the job,” states NCBMP Board Chairman, Kevin Richardson. “We are now better positioned to compete, educate, and highlight the impact of our business as we approach our 40th anniversary. We are excited about Jason leading the way.”

Dunn, the first Black Vice President at Visit Cincy in its 77-year history, is an 18-year tourism industry veteran and will leave his current position to lead NCBMP. While at Visit Cincy, Dunn has led transformative initiatives that have positioned Cincinnati as a destination of choice for many diverse conventions. Under his leadership, Visit Cincy has hosted 21 of the top 25 diverse organizations and the City of Cincinnati is now preparing to welcome its largest convention in 18 years, which is for the African Methodist Episcopal Church 52nd Quadrennial Session in 2024. Specifically, Dunn has been attributed to helping rebuild Cincinnati’s image after the racial unrest in 2001 by introducing a strategic community-based engagement model for tourism growth. He is further credited with being a key influencer in the reinvention of the region’s transportation system of which he believed would help get hospitality professionals to work with dignity.

Furthermore, as a strong believer in the power of authentic local and global strategic partnerships that seek to empower communities via tourism, Dunn has initiated such key partnerships by way of Visit Cincy’s “Vibe Cincinnati” platform that have emboldened communities to organize and celebrate their cultures with intentionality. Such partnerships have led to innovative activations like “The Cincinnati Moon Festival,” “Cincy Soul’s ‘The Black Taste,'” The Cincinnati Music Festival’s “Vibe Night,” The Un-Told Speaker Series, Cincinnati Pride’s Speaker Series, the Cincinnati International Jazz Festival, the Cincinnati Rhythm by COMPASS, and “Cincy Sabrosso.”

In addition, Mr. Dunn led the development of the Dan Lincoln Institute for Hospitality Leadership (IHL) program. IHL is an initiative that works to increase skilled and diverse talent in the hospitality sector by implementing innovative curriculum into Cincinnati Public Schools systems as well as with Cincinnati-based colleges, and hospitality businesses. The overall goal of IHL is to build a diverse workforce that is both grounded and visionary. IHL is the only program of its kind in the state of Ohio.

Knowing that research drives decisions, Dunn has fostered partnerships that have helped to reset the travel and tourism industry beliefs and challenged the status quo through data.  He has led the “MMGY’s Global Black Travel Study,” The Events Industry Council‘s Global Equity Study, the Annual State of Black Tourism Summit, The Cincinnati Music Festival‘s Economic Impact Study, The Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky African American Chamber‘s Black Business Economic Impact Study, Visit Cincy’s Black Leisure Travelers Destination Marketing Study and sparked the idea to create an DMO (Destination Management Organization) Assessment tool led by Destination International.

“Visit Cincy has truly prepared me for the power/influence of this industry. At the same time, NCBMP has paved the way for me to live up to its creed. Strategic partnerships rooted in authenticity, substance and friendship will be key in leading the hospitality industry. NCBMP has a rich history of being at the forefront and we seek to make our founders proud and work closely with our Board of Directors to ensure we are positioned to compete,” Dunn said.

For more information on the NCBMP, visit https://ncbmp.com/.

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