Peter J. Berry, CAE, has been elected the new Chair of the Connecticut
Convention & Sports Bureau (CTCSB). He will replace Robert F. Flynn,
who will complete three years of leadership in that position on June 30, 2013.
Berry is a longtime member of the Bureau and its Executive Board.
“Peter Berry has been a tremendous advocate of the mission of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau and the former Greater Hartford Convention & Visitors Bureau,” explains Michael Van Parys, President of the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau. “As an association executive himself, he has extensive expertise in our industry and will provide great leadership as we continue to market the entire state as a prime location for conventions, conferences, meetings and sports events.”
Berry brings more than 30 years of association management experience to his new position at the Connecticut Convention & Sports Bureau. In 1983, he founded Association Resources, Inc. (AR), an association management firm that is the headquarters for several international, national, and state associations. In the Fall of 2012, Berry stepped down as President of AR, reducing his management responsibilities. He currently works part-time on various client projects. AR has offices in West Hartford, Conn. and Washington, D.C.
In addition to his leadership at Association Resources Inc., Berry served as an Executive Director for various organizations. Most notably, he was Chief Staff Officer for the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA) from1984 to 2012 and for the International League Against Epilepsy from 1997 to 2012. Years earlier, Berry was appointed the first Executive Director of the Connecticut Police Chiefs Association in 1978.
Throughout his career in association management, Berry has been active in his profession’s national association, the American Society of Association Executives (ASAE). A current member of the ASAE’s Public Policy Committee, he has participated on several ASAE committees and served as Chair of the 1996 Annual Meeting Advisory Committee and the Evaluation Committee. Berry also is a Past President of the Connecticut Society of Association Executives (CSAE).
Berry served on the Connecticut Business and Industry Association (CBIA)’s Small Business Advisory Committee from 1997 to 2004. He was an elected delegate from Connecticut to the White House Conference on Small Business in 1995. From 1973 to 1982, he was a member of the Board of Trustees of the Connecticut State University System – the governing board for the four State universities, first appointed by Gov. Thomas Meskill and later reappointed by Gov. Ella Grasso. He also sat on the Connecticut Board of Higher Education from 1977 to 1979, a position he attained through election by the State University trustees.
A resident of West Hartford, Conn. for more 30 years, Berry was born and raised in Waterbury, Conn. He received his bachelor’s degree in Political Science from Central Connecticut State University and earned a graduate degree in Criminal Justice from Northeastern University. He is a Past President of the Central Connecticut State University Alumni Association and the Kingswood-Oxford School Parents Association.