History
of the Metro Conference
The
Metro Conference has been a part of the
United States Junior Chamber (USJC) for
many years. There once was a USJC National
Vice President elected at National Convention
and assigned to Metro the same way the
other National Vice Presidents are assigned
to states. The last person to hold this
position was Robert Cannon from Arkansas
in 1989-90. A USJC Metro Chairperson replaced
the Vice President. In September 1990
the Greater Hartford, Connecticut Jaycees
hosted the final USJC sponsored (sanctioned
and budgeted) Metro meeting.
USJC
YEAR |
Host
Chapter /
City |
National
Metro Director |
Director's
Chapter |
USJC
President |
| 2006 |
St. Louis |
Lori Tomlin |
Muncie, IN |
Lisa Parrish |
| 2005 |
New
Orleans |
Michelle
MacDonald |
Ann
Arbor, MI |
Julie
Metzger |
| 2004 |
Newport
Beach |
Scott
Greenlee |
Grand
Rapids, MI |
Lon
Fox |
| 2003 |
Chicago |
Cherie
VanderVeen |
Grand
Rapids, MI |
Mike
Faller |
| 2002 |
Grand
Rapids |
Rob
Moore |
Orlando,
FL |
John
Nygren |
| June-Dec
2001 |
|
Bruce
Rector |
Lexington,
KY |
Sydney
Ward |
| Jan-June
2001 |
Omaha |
Susan
Knoeppel |
Long
Beach , CA |
Sydney
Ward |
| 2000 |
Greensboro |
Debra
Adair |
Omaha,
NE |
John
Prozinski |
| 1999 |
Seattle |
Kumar
Lakhavani |
Greensboro,
NC |
Chris
Reese |
| 1998-1999 |
Coconut
Grove |
Caroline
Tuck |
Alexandria,
VA |
Eric
Seidel |
| 1997-1998 |
San
Jose |
Caroline
Tuck |
Alexandria,
VA |
Eric
Seidel |
| 1996-1997 |
Baton
Rouge |
Deanna
Haley |
Seattle,
WA |
Mike
Marshall |
| 1995-1996 |
Hartford |
Stew
Mones |
Greensboro,
NC |
Kelly
Wills |
| 1994-1995 |
Grand
Rapids |
Rob
Hathaway |
Warrenton-Faquier,
VA |
Gary
Tompkins |
| 1993-1994 |
Seattle |
Diane
Ferris |
Grand
Rapids, MI |
Matt
Shapiro |
| 1992-1993 |
Omaha |
Sandi
Frost-Parrish |
Grand
Rapids, MI |
Bill
Russell |
| 1991-1992 |
Greensboro |
|
|
|
In 1991, Rob Bencini, then Chairman
of the Board of the Greensboro,
North Carolina Jaycees, invited
the ten largest chapters to meet
"unofficially" in Greensboro.
Six attended and this group was
dubbed the "Six Pack",
and this annual meeting later became
known as "Met Net", short
for Metro Networking Conference
Meeting.
1992,
the USJCC initiates a bylaw that
creates the National Metro Director
position … a non-voting
member of the USJCC board of Directors.
Sandi Frost-Parrish is the 1st
person to hold this position.
Under Sandi, the Bylaws of the
USJCC Metro Conference are written
and adopted.
September
1992…Joan Bohannon (Omaha
Jaycees) coins the term “Met-Net”…
replacing “Six-Pack”
…for the 2nd annual meeting
of Metro conference Jaycees in
Omaha.
1995
Met Net (Hartford) …USJCC
President Kelly Wills is the first
in his position to attend a Met
Net. President Wills begins
the tradition of meeting solo
with the Local President group
for one-on-one feedback and exchange.
Because of President Wills’
active support of Metro activities,
the ‘independent’
nature of the Met Net Conference
bridges the gap and incorporates
the assistance and input of the
USJCC Tulsa office. While,
in the past, the Met Net group
had been seen as a bit on the
‘renegade’ side, this
conference marked the first official
Tulsa support since the funding
of Metro had been discontinued
after the 1990 Hartford meeting.
1998-99…
Caroline Tuck becomes the ‘asterisk’
of the chain of Metro Directors
as she serves the 17 month term
needed to bridge the gap of the
USJCC fiscal year change.
Caroline is the only Metro Director
to serve in the post for 2 Met
Net Conferences…’97
in San Jose and ‘98 in Coconut
Grove. During Caroline’s
tenure, she and her team travel
more than any other past Metro
Team. USJCC Presidents Marshall
and Seidel are very supportive
of her efforts.
The
2000 Met Net Conference celebrates
its 10-Year Anniversary by returning
to the site of the “Six
Pack” Meeting…Greensboro.
In
2005, the first joint Met Net
conference was held with metro
chapters from around the world
attending. Members from Germany,
Scotland, Japan, France, and Cameroon
joined members from across the
US for the signature networking
event, providing a vastly dynamic,
intellectually cultural experience
for a diverse and energetic group
of young professionals.
USJC Year:
2006
| Host
Chapter/City: |
Missouri
Jaycees Region 5 |
| National
Metro Director: |
Lori
Tomlin |
| Director’s
Chapter: |
Muncie,
IN |
| USJC
President: |
Lisa
Parrish |
|
|