Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/52019
MELVIN TENNANT is president and chief executive officer of Meet Minneapolis, the official convention and visitors association.He became the organi- zation's second CEO in 2006. Since joining Meet Minneapolis, Tennant has overseen convention sales and marketing programs that bring an economic impact of approxi- mately $11 billion to the area. With an annu- al budget of $9million and a staff of 50, he recently oversaw the effort to repo- sition the destina- tion's brand, using the new tagline: "Minneapolis City by Nature." He also played an integral role in laying the groundwork and imp l eme n t i n g logistics for Minneapolis Saint Paul's suc- cessful hosting of the 2008 Republican National Convention. Additionally, Tennant oversees the management and operations of iDSS, a private company that delivers a complete web-based series of software applications for destination marketing organizations, associations, hotels and cor- porations. Bringing more than 25 years experience in destination sales and marketing to Meet Minneapolis, Tennant has served on the boards of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce and the Minneapolis Downtown Council and the Airport Foundation MSP. In addition, Tennant has served on the boards of Religious Conference Management Association (RCMA), the Travel Industry Association, the ASAE and the Center for Association Leadership, Meeting Professionals International (MPI) and the MPI Foundation, and is a past chairman of DMAI. During his career Tennant has received many accolades, most notably the RMCA's President Award, MPI's Chapter Legacy Award - Carolina Chapter, and Black Meetings & Tourism magazine's APEX Award. Tennant received his B.A. from Rice University and holds an Association Executive Certificate from ASAE. ALBERT TUCKER serves as vice president of Multicultural Business Development for the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau (GFLCVB). It is Tucker's vision to expose ethnically diverse individuals and groups to Greater Fort Lauderdale so that GFL becomes the destination of choice for individuals of color. A key part of the outreach is to identify and support infrastructure and tourism projects that will facilitate multicultural visitor growth. For the past ten years, Tucker has helped increase multicultural participa- tion in the tourism and con- vention sales market by more than 40%. During summer 2010 more than 150 family reunions chose Greater Fort Lauderdale as their gathering place. With the com- bined numbers from other multicultur- al summer business Greater Fort Lauderdale realized an economic impact of more than $5 million to the community. Tucker has been the visionary in the development of The Gospel Complex for Education and Preservation, which will be located in Lauderhill, FL. This $50 million project will provide the gospel music industry with a home to preserve the rich history of this genre and will serve as a center for econom- ic and educational empowerment for all. The Gospel Complex is scheduled for completion in mid 2012. In addition to his public service, Tucker currently serves on the Executive Board of the Urban League of Broward County the 100 Black Men of Greater Fort Lauderdale and is inti- mately involved with the expansion of Jazz in the Gardens musical festival, which brings in more than 50,000 visi- tors to South Florida. CAROLWALLACE,president&CEO of the San Diego Convention Center Corporation, is responsible for the overall management, marketing and operation of the San Diego Convention Center. She joined the corporation in 1991 and over- sees a full-time and part-time staff of 550 and an annual budget that exceeds $32mil- lion. Her latest achievements include: serv- ing on the board of directors for the Professional Convention Management Association Education Foundation (PCMA); receiving the Outstanding Leadership Award from the Center on Policy Initiatives; being honored with the Trailblazer Award from Leadership California; and being named one of the Most Influ- ential African-Ame- ricans in the Meet- ings/Tourism Industry by Black Meetings & Tourism for the third year in a row. Wallace has more than 30 years of experience in the convention and facility management industry. AHMEENAH YOUNG is an accom- plished senior executive in the tourism and hospitality industry with outstanding cre- dentials and a proven record of results. Across all of her professional posts she has con- sistently main- tained diligent focus on growth in productivity and made bottom-line profitability a priority. As president and CEO of the Pennsylvania Convention Center, Young recommends and implements all contrac- tual and vendor services, directs all recruit- ing processes and participates in selection of PCCA employees. She oversees mar- keting, public relations and customer serv- ice programs as well as development of budgets, financial policies and fiscal con- trols for the operation of the PCCA. Young currently sits on boards for Sunoco Welcome America!, Temple University's School of Tourism and Hospitality Management, Art Sanctuary, MANNA, North Philadelphia Health Systems, Philadelphia Academies, National Forum for Black Public Administrators, Mount Airy USA, and the Philadelphia Airport. She is also a member of the Executive Committee of the Philadelphia Convention andVisitors Bureau. Black Meetings & Tourism November/December 2011: www.blackmeetingsandtourism.com 55