Foundation Board member appointed to TourismOhio Advisory Board

Above: Central State University Foundation Board member Jason Dunn (second from left) visits with young women during a leadership trip with the NAACP in Accra, Ghana.

Columbus native and Central State University Foundation Board member Jason Dunn has earlier this month been appointed to the TourismOhio Advisory Board by Gov. Mike DeWine. 

As a board member of the Central State University Foundation, Dunn has worked with his colleagues to provide Marauders with financial assistance via scholarships and other forms of underwriting, subsidies, endowments, and awards that may be pertinent to students in need. Such funding goes to student education, housing, and other necessary expenses to ensure qualified Marauders are able to focus on their schooling and achieve success in graduation. 

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While attending the University of Cincinnati from 1998 through 2001, Dunn became intimately involved in community activities and soon “cut (his) teeth in local politics,” as he put it. Dunn became particularly involved in the political scene during what he referred to as the “unrest” and series of protests that took place in 2001 after the 15th shooting of an African American man by area law enforcement. 

“The Cincinnati Convention & Visitors Bureau was in the bull’s eye of many of the protests, and many of the conventions, organizations, and concerts that would be coming to the city decided to boycott,” Dunn said. “As more and more groups were pulling out of coming to the city that year, I became something of a bridge between UC and the community.” 

Around the time of his graduating from UC, Dunn emailed the vice mayor of the time to tell her that his experiences as a mediator during the political unrest had piqued his interest in getting involved with tourism. Dunn was brought in to assist in a variety of capacities to act once again as an intermediary, this time between the city writ large and local community members, ultimately leading to joining the National Coalition of Black Meeting Professionals (NCBMP). 

As of 2022, Dunn runs that organization as executive director, founded in 1983, and whose stated goal is to “be the preeminent organization in educating African American association executives and meeting planners in all aspects of the meeting planning profession.” 

Dunn was officially invited to start working for the Visitors Bureau in 2004.

“I worked my way up through the organization to director of diversity sales, and that’s when I worked with the NAACP and National Baptist conventions in coming out to the city,” Dunn said. “It was those conventions that pretty much set the standards for what Cincinnati is experiencing now, particularly when it comes to having a multicultural background. In fact, as of 2018, 25% of all conventions were from the diversity market, which frankly hasn’t been heard nor seen anywhere else around the country, specifically in the Midwest.” 

Through the Visitors Bureau, Dunn met representatives from Central State in the mid-2000s who made him aware of the Institution and its wealth of diverse talent for programs he was developing and running through his office.  

“Around 2009, we were introduced to the Central State Hospitality Program, brought on three of their students as interns, one of whom we later hired on to work with us in tourism and etc., which is how I first became directly involved with the University,” Dunn said.  

Two years ago, Dunn was brought on to the Central State Foundation Board and has since been affiliated with the school in that regard, as well. 

“Our job on the board is to help find resources to ensure that Central State can become one of the best colleges in the country,” Dunn said.

“Through some recent restructuring and rebuilding of the board, we’ve been able to start doing much to be more forward-thinking and finding ways of expanding this conversation about making Central State even more viable as a higher-educational Institution in the near future.” 

Dunn continued that the board is also now working to be represented and seen beyond the campus and Ohio to the national forum in order to spotlight what Central State is and does for larger audiences, markets, potential donors, corporate partners, educators, and future students.  

“It was a great honor to be appointed to the TourismOhio Advisory Board by Gov. DeWine,” Dunn said about his most recent auspicious role. “What the role is focused on is helping to position Ohio as a destination choice for families, conventions, and friends, while also establishing a way to retain talent and create experiences that exemplify our cultural assets.” 

With a particular eye on multiculturalism, Dunn’s work with the board will additionally concentrate on ensuring those individuals and organizations who come to Ohio will enjoy themselves enough to want to stay or return regularly after their visits.  

“As large corporations come to us, we want to show them we have the talent and experiences available here that will make them want to stay here, which in turn will bring more jobs and equity to the state,” Dunn said.  

In his role as a board member of the Central State Foundation, Dunn will be looking to leverage his new appointment to provide more specialized job preparation for Marauders, especially through the school’s business program and other appropriate departments.  

“In addition to talent retention through the school,” Dunn continued, “I believe that as we work to position Ohio as a destination of choice, we will also be able to highlight the history of Central State and its home in Wilberforce, as well as what that means to our individual communities.  

“As we celebrate the school and town, we can showcase the cultural identity of the region, which in turn will further attract corporations to move in and set up shop for more job opportunities for students and graduates.” 

Dunn is energized, too, by the ability to promote Central State’s talent pool when engaging with organizations and corporations with whom he’ll be working more directly through his position at TourismOhio.  

“I’ll be proud to speak what I know, which is that Central State is one of the oldest educational institutions in Ohio, that it does have riches of talent, and that the people I’ll be talking with should come and see what Central State offers, which will help give students opportunities outside of Ohio in addition to those statewide." — Jason Dunn 

“Tourism is about economic development, job creation, talent retention, and forward-thinking progress. And I’ve passionately strived throughout the 20 years of my career toward those efforts.’”