Playing party politics

Michelle Jennings ('97) has James Madison to thank for the role she played at the Republican National Convention in Philadelphia last summer. Madison, along with Thomas Jefferson, initiated the two-party system when they created the Democratic-Republican party to oppose George Washington and Alexander Hamilton's Federalist position.

"There was an electricity in the city during the week," says Jennings describing the atmosphere of last summer's Republican National Convention in the City of Brotherly Love. Jennings, who works for the Philadelphia Convention and Visitors Bureau, helped organize 55 state delegate parties for the convention kick-off. She was responsible for recruiting 55 volunteers to staff each delegate party and says, "everyone chipped in to make sure it went off without a hitch."

Jennings was on the floor all five days of the convention. She remembers watching the political conventions on television as a child and says she was excited to be "a witness to history," especially considering how unprecedented the electoral contest later turned out to be. Jennings listened to speeches by Republican leaders, including Gen. Colin Powell and future President George W. Bush, and rubbed shoulders with national media notables like ABC's Sam Donaldson and CBS's Dan Rather.

The convention was a time for delegates to renew party energy and to get to know members of the media, but for Jennings the week was about selling the city of Philadelphia to 45,000 convention attendees. That is essentially what Jennings does, "sell the city of Philadelphia as a product." One of the perks of her position is the variety of people she meets on any given day. "You never know whom you're going to talk to," she says. "I've made contacts all over the world."

Jennings, originally from Midlothian, earned her bachelor's degree in history with a minor in Italian. She accepted a postgraduate internship with the PCVB in the summer of 1997. She worked briefly at Disney World in Florida and completed Disney's hospitality management classes before interviewing for and winning her current position at the PCVB. She credits a semester abroad in Florence with making her feel more comfortable in her job. "JMU was a one-in-a-million experience … [it] prepares you for the real world." Jennings lives in Ardmore, Pa., and is completing her M.B.A. at Temple University with a concentration in tourism and hospitality.

By Steven Glass ('01)