Delegates to the 62nd Annual Meeting of the Young Bankers Division of the Tennessee Bankers Association elected new officers and directors on April 5, 2022, in Memphis, Tenn. Justin Nipper, Vice President and Chief Administration Officer for The Farmers Bank in Portland, was installed as the new chairman, accepting the gavel from 2021-2022 Chairman Michael Saporito, Mountain Commerce Bank.
New Officers
Delegates elected the following bankers to serve as officers:
- Chairman—Justin Nipper, Executive Vice President and Chief Administration Officer, The Farmers Bank, Portland
- Chairman-elect—Billie Jo Parker, Senior Vice President & Financial Advisor, Pinnacle Financial Partners, Memphis
- Vice Chairman—John Seiber, Peoples Bank of the South, Clinton
- Immediate Past Chairman—Michael J. Saporito, II, Senior Vice President & Relationship Manager, Mountain Commerce Bank, Knoxville
As chairman of the Division, Nipper will serve as an ex-officio member of the Tennessee Bankers Association board of directors. Parker, as chairman-elect, will serve as an ex-officio member of the Tennessee Bankers Association BankPac Committee.
“It is an honor to serve as the chairman of the TBA Young Bankers Division, which has been shaped over the last 60 years by some of the most well-respected bankers in Tennessee,” said Nipper. “As in many industries, banks are looking to identify and groom the next generation of leaders. The Young Bankers Division has a well-established track record of providing the network and professional development skills bankers need to become effective and influential leaders in their banks and communities.”
Directors
In addition to the four executive officers, the Young Bankers Division is governed by a nine-member board composed of three directors from each of the three grand divisions of the state—East, Middle, and West. Directors serve a three-year term with one director from each of the grand divisions rotating off each year and are replaced by a newly elected banker from the same division.
Directors elected to the board during this year’s Annual Meeting were:
- East Tennessee—Joe Snyder, Assistant Vice President & Relationship Manager, SmartBank, Chattanooga
- Middle Tennessee—Jared McCullough, Vice President, First Commerce Bank, Lewisburg
- West Tennessee—Andrew Sprecher, Senior Vice President & Chief Financial Officer, Bank3, Memphis
Bankers who have completed their three-year terms and rotated off the board were:
- West Tennessee—Lauren Smith, Senior Vice President & Chief Risk Officer, Decatur County Bank, Decaturville
- Middle Tennessee—Coty Grissom, Vice President & Loan Officer, Homeland Community Bank, McMinnville
Directors continuing to serve out their terms on the board are:
- Jared Palazzola, Senior Vice President, Bank of Tennessee, Knoxville
- Brooke Regen, Senior Vice President & Chief Risk Officer, First Citizens National Bank, Dyersburg
- Debbie Reid, CPA & Assistant Controller, Citizens Tri-County Bank, Dunlap
- C.J. Tate, Assistant Branch Manager & Banking Officer, Citizens National Bank, Pigeon Forge
- Billy Snyder, Vice President & Branch Manager, Citizens Bank of Lafayette, Westmoreland
- Adam Milligan, Vice President, Commercial Bank & Trust, Jackson
The Young Bankers Division was established in 1960 and is devoted to preparing Tennessee’s young bank officers to become the industry’s next generation of leaders.
The members of the division represent financial institutions across the state of Tennessee. In addition to the two-day professional development conference, Leadership Convention, the division hosts the Young Bankers’ Day on the Hill. This program reinforces the importance of involvement in the TBA’s government relations activities. During this annual event, bankers spend a day at the Capitol in Nashville engaging in the legislative process and learning about how the General Assembly functions.
