Category Archives: Genealogical Education

A bit of a rest…

Certification, , ,

Leading up to GRIP (GRIP Genealogy Institute) was a whirlwind. Cyndi Ingle, Paula Stuart-Warren, and I put together a brand new course about researching your farming ancestors. We had so much fun doing the research to put the course together. We ran into so many interesting topics, resources, historical events, inventions, records, repositories, and so on, that the course probably could have been two weeks, easy. But that’s a story for another time. All of that work and then the teaching for the week, while fun, was also exhausting; I took a little rest from the blog.

But I’m back, at least somewhat. I’m now working on a big project that has a due date… my recertification project is in full swing! I cannot believe how fast five years goes. Well, these last five years have been weird anyway, so that didn’t help matters.

I am one of those crazy morning people. Since January and getting ready for GRIP, I have been getting up at 5:30 am and shortly thereafter heading to my office to get a couple of hours of work in before my workday at Ancestry ProGenealogists. It has been going very well. Now that GRIP is over, I’ve been working on this project in the same time slot and have made some great progress.

I’ve written about this project before. The target ancestor is George Long, who died in Hancock County, Ohio, in 1855. Where did he come from before Hancock County? I identified 11 candidate George Longs in the right time and place. So, my project has been first identifying and then eliminating those candidates, and then researching the one left standing to prove he is the right man.

Stay tuned for more fun times.

GRIP: Digging Deeper

Genealogical Education, ,

Another course offered at GRIP Genealogy Institute this summer is coordinated by Paula Stuart-Warren, CG, FMGS, FUGA. It is called “Digging Deeper: Records, Tools, and Skills.” I am one of the instructors for this course and am looking forward to it!

For the complete details and to register, visit this link.

Paula is a fantastic instructor. She does an excellent job with hands-on experiences in addition to the lectures. This course is great for anyone wanting to expand or polish their genealogical skills.

I’ll be teaching two classes, one on PERSI (Periodical Source Index) and one on Probate Records.

Paula is also teaching in the “Not Just Farmers” course I am coordinating and in “Midwest Family History Research: Migrations and Sources” coordinated by Jay Fonkert. She wrote a blog post about this here.

There are a lot of educational opportunities coming up this summer. This class is one you should consider if you haven’t taken it already!

For the complete details and to register, visit this link.

Birdie Monk Holsclaw IGHR Scholarship

Genealogical Education,

Birdie was a dear friend and my genealogy mentor. She was a special person, just always making you feel welcome, seen, heard, validated, and like your ideas matter. When she died in 2010, I was devastated, and I know many others were too. It’s not everyday that a Birdie comes along, takes you under your wing, makes you laugh, and gives you a career path you hadn’t considered. I would not be a professional genealogist today if it weren’t for Birdie. I owe her so much.

After he passing, a fund was created in her honor that had three parts: a sponsored lecture at the NGS conference, a volunteer of the year award, and an scholarship to attend IGHR (the Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research). The fund has since been closed. However, IGHR wanted to revive the scholarship in Birdie’s name and offered to hold and administer the funds if I would help coordinate it and help find donors. Of course, I said yes. If one more person can benefit from Birdie’s influence, then it is worth it! Birdie was the one to first encourage me to attend IGHR.

IGHR will accept donations (tax-deductible) for the Birdie scholarship and they will collect applications for those who wish to apply for it.

Birdie Holsclaw

The full details for the scholarship including how to donate and how to apply are available here: https://ighr.gagensociety.org/birdie-monk-holsclaw/

Please feel free to share this information with your societies and genealogical friends, either to help get donations but also to let students know about the scholarship opportunity. I would appreciate it and I know Birdie would be so pleased to have students attending IGHR. She was an ardent supporter of high-quality education and I’m so happy to help fellow genealogists attend as well.

Next Round of Mastering Genealogical Proof Study Groups are Forming!

Genealogical Education, Presentations and Events, Skill Building,

Our next round of Mastering Genealogical Proof study groups is forming! We are studying the book by Tom Jones and working through the workbook questions. These two groups will be lead by Cyndi Ingle (of Cyndi’s List). Here are the details:

  • There will be two sessions: Wednesday daytime at 3pm Eastern, and Wednesday evenings at 7pm Eastern (so adjust for your time zone), both being led by Cyndi Ingle. Beginning October 5 – November 16, 2022 (7 weeks, plus optional 8th week). Each class will be about an hour.
  • We will meet on Zoom.
  • Cost for the course: $75
  • You will need to have the book, Mastering Genealogical Proof by Tom Jones. It can be purchased on Amazon or through the National Genealogical Society if you don’t already have it.
  • There are questions in the book that we will use to guide discussion. Reading the chapter and answering the discussion questions will prepare you for each week’s class.
  • For first half (or so) of each class session, we will present/recap the principles for that week (we’ll have slides).
  • The second half will be going over the discussion questions.
  • There will also be a private Facebook group for this class only so you can ask questions and discuss issues in-between class sessions.
  • Class size is limited to 25.

Choose either of these two times, click the link to register:

We look forward to studying with you!

If this session does not work for you, we will be holding the next session in 2023. To be notified when registration opens for the next session, please click this link to sign up for the waitlist. (This waitlist is just a way for us to collect your email so we can notify you of registration and is not a guarantee of a seat in the class.)

Mastering Genealogical Documentation Study Group Now Forming!

Genealogical Education, ,

The Mastering Genealogical Documentation Study Group is back! Registration is now open!

Mastering Genealogical Documentation, a Seven-Week Beginning Principles Course, lead by Cyndi Ingle of Cyndi’s List. (Cari is on a hiatus this time around.) The course runs from August 3, 2022 through September 21, 2022 – 7 weeks, plus an optional 8th week to review optional homework. The fee is US$75.00. You must own a copy of Mastering Genealogical Documentation, available through NGS.

There will be three different sessions to choose from:

  1. Wednesday daytime at Noon Pacific/3pm Eastern (Register Here)
  2. Wednesday evening at 4pm Pacific/7pm Eastern (Register Here)
  3. Thursday daytime at 1pm Pacific/4pm Eastern (Register Here)

Each class will be about an hour and a half, but sometimes may go over that if the discussion requires it. This is for those who have never studied this book before. We will be studying this from a beginner or slightly intermediate level. It is recommended that you have studied the book Mastering Genealogical Proof, but not a requirement for taking this class. If you’ve done one of these groups before and want a refresher, that’s ok too! I will take 25 students in each class.

Study group details are here.

GRIP 2022

Genealogical Education

I just wanted to share a quick update about the course I am coordinating this summer at the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh. The course is called “Following Ancestors in Time and Place” and is being taught by myself and four top instructors in the field. The theme is to sort of take a journey with your ancestors, from the time they move into the country, through their earliest connections with religion, through examination of their migration and transportation through the U.S, important methodologies researchers need to follow those ancestors, finalized by getting yourself and your research organized.

Besides myself you will learn from:

  • Cyndi Ingle
  • Rev. David McDonald, DMin
  • Paula Stuart-Warren, CG, FMGS, FUGA
  • Rich Venezia

The course is being held virtually June 19 -24, 2022. For the full course description and schedule, and to register for one of the few remaining seats, click here.

I will also be teaching two sessions in Paula Stuart-Warren’s course “Digging Deeper” which will be held 10-15 July 2022, also virtually. Course instructors include myself and:

  • Cyndi Ingle
  • Debbie Mieszala, CG
  • Paula Stuart-Warren, CG

For the full course description and schedule, and to register for this course, click here.

I hope to see you this summer! These two course are fun and I’m looking forward to another fantastic time at GRIP!

NGSQ Study Groups for 2022

Genealogical Education, , , ,

Can you believe it is only a couple of weeks away until 2022? I can’t. This year has gone so slowly that I’m shocked to find us at the end of it.

Our NGSQ (National Genealogical Society Quarterly) study groups are forming for 2022 and we still have a few seats left! These discussions are run by Cyndi Ingle (of Cyndi’s List) and myself and between the two of us, we offer 4 different time slots.

We have worksheets that help us breakdown and discuss the articles. Also, each month you get 5-6 unique questions for that particular article to help lead the discussion. We focus on principles found in the book Mastering Genealogical Proof so we are covering the elements of the Genealogical Proof Standard from each article. We also host private Facebook Groups to facilitate discussion between sessions.

You can find more information and sign up at this page: https://genealogypants.com/research-and-consultation-services/classes-and-study-groups/

Just click on the section you are interested in to get more details.

We will be sending out more information to those of you who have signed up very soon. We hope to see you in 2022!

I’m a student this week!

Genealogical Education

Hi readers… this week I get the unusual opportunity to be a student! So often I’m teaching during institute and conference weeks. This week I am taking David Rencher’s Irish course through IGHR. And working on my own genealogy for once!

We will resume with the Locality Guide series next week.

Next Mastering Genealogical Proof Study Groups Forming

Genealogical Education,

Registration is now open for the next Mastering Genealogical Proof study group which begins on April 21, 2021. If you are interested, now is the time to register! The class information is as follows:

This will be a beginner/low-intermediate level class to study the book Mastering Genealogical Proof by Tom Jones. We will cover the principles outlined in the book as well as discuss the workbook questions.

Details of the course (PLEASE READ):

  • There will be two sessions: Wednesday daytime (lead by Cyndi Ingle of Cyndi’s List), at 3pm Eastern, and Wednesday evenings (lead by Cari Taplin) at 8pm Eastern (so adjust for your time zone). Beginning April 21, 2021 and ending June 2, 2021 (so 7 weeks total). Each class will be about an hour.
  • We will meet on Zoom. 
  • Cost for the course: $50
  • You will need to have the book, Mastering Genealogical Proof. It can be purchased on Amazon or through the National Genealogical Society if you don’t already have it.
  • There are questions in the book that we will use to guide discussion. Reading the chapter and answering the discussion questions will prepare you for each week’s class.
  • For first half (or so) of each class session, I will present/recap the principles for that week (I’ll have slides).
  • The second half will be going over the discussion questions.
  • There will also be a private Facebook group for this class only so you can ask questions and discuss issues in-between class sessions.
  • Class size is limited to 25.

If you are interested, please sign up for the class time you are interested in:

Wednesdays, 3pm Eastern (with Cyndi): https://checkout.square.site/merchant/ZR9R1ZQPYQB26/checkout/OBWHBLEU5VJITZ2S4N2YCQ5M

Wednesdays, 8pm Eastern (with Cari): https://checkout.square.site/merchant/ZR9R1ZQPYQB26/checkout/6IXPC72D2U242JANRANHAYXN

We look forward to studying with you!

NOTE: If this session does not work for you, we will be holding the next session beginning on October 6, 2021. To be notified when registration opens for the next session, please click this link to sign up for the waitlist.

GRIP Registration Opens Today!

Announcements, Genealogical Education, Genealogy Program

Just a quick note to let you know that registration for the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP) opens today! Click HERE for more information.

I will be coordinating a course about Great Lakes research titled “The Spirit of the Inland Seas” with the wonderfully experienced and fun teachers such as Paula Stuart Warren, Cyndi Ingle, and Judy G. Russell.

I will also be teaching in Paula Stuart Warren’s course “Digging Deeper: Records, Tools, and Skills.” I will present on the topics of probate records and PERSI.

Registration opens today, Wednesday, February 17th, at Noon Eastern for June courses and 2 PM Eastern for July courses. I hope to see you there!