Discussion is a great thing and always helpful. As Andy has said we tried meeting outside the chapter with little participation. Be aware that most of what he listed can be archived on the general board. BMI, Taxi, NSAI, web sites and much more info is available at your fingertips.
The question you need to ask yourself is "Am I willing to do what it takes to achieve my goal"? The bar is higher than you can imagine to make it in our chosen field. NSAI can help you write better songs, however, can you pay the fee and attend the monthly meetings in Tampa? Taxi can give you critques of you songs for a fee. They are brutally honest and before you spend the money you need to ask yourself am I good enough? Your recordings and songs need to be top notch to get through them and have a chance. The point is most of us already know of these avenues that can help us get there and only a few are willing to use them. I have attended NSAI and they made me a better song writer. I went to Nashville for a NSAI event and it opened my eyes. All cost money and time.
The showcase is what it is. Every attempt to make it something else has not worked. Network and establish friendships and communiciations with it's members and you will learn a great deal. It's already there. By all means bring in a speaker if they have something new to offer.
By the way, I include myself as someone who knows what I need to do to become a better songwriter, better guitar player, and better at recording, and for a variety of reasons won't do what it takes to get there.
Dan