ACGS Spring Conference 2024

100% Virtual

May 18, 2024  11 a.m. – 3 p.m. ET

A Day of DNA Presentations

A growing number of members have requested that ACGS have one presentation or more information on DNA.  2024’s Spring Conference has been prepared to fulfill this need.  We hope that all our member are able to take something away from each presentation to help their own family research.

Registration closes on May 11, 2024

Speaker Biographies and Presentation Summary

Sara Cochran, “My DNA Brought Me to the Forest, but Where Are All the Trees?”

Sara is a full-time professional genealogist with thirty years of research experience. Her research has taken her to nearly every state in the USA and Ireland. She especially enjoys breaking down brick walls and discovering the stories of black-sheep ancestors.

Sara holds a Boston University Genealogical Research Certificate, a Bachelor’s Degree in Library Science, and is an alum of the ProGen Study Group. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and the Genealogical Speakers Guild.

You can find her online at TheSkeletonWhisperer.com.

My DNA Brought Me to the Forest, but Where Are All the Trees?

Genealogical DNA tests are bringing thousands of new cousins to our attention, but many of them don’t have trees yet, or the trees aren’t attached to their test. Learn some new techniques for figuring out where how these individuals connect with you. (Focus is on Ancestry.com results system).

Paula Williams, “Summon Your Inner Sherlock Holmes”

Paula is a professional genealogist who has been researching for more than two decades in primarily Southern US states and has been using DNA to solve problems for more than a decade. She has studied at IGHR, SLIG, GRIP, and the Genealogical Institute on Federal Records (Gen-Fed). In addition, she’s a board member of the Virginia Genealogical Society and of the Genealogical Research Institute of Virginia (GRIVA) and is the facilitator for the latter’s DNA Special Interest Group. She has taught at the IGHR and GRIP institutes and has lectured for the Southern California Genealogical Society’s Genealogy Jamboree and for the National Genealogical Society conference, among others.

Summon Your Inner Sherlock Holmes

Genealogy research is often seen as detective work, especially when it comes to identifying and evaluating our DNA matches. We’ll explore some of Sherlock Holmes’s philosophies and apply them to our DNA analysis.

Debbie Wilson Smyth, “DNA Doesn’t Lie, But Needs Help to Find the Truth!”

Debbie Wilson Smyth has been researching her family since 1993 and holds a Certificate in the Genealogical Research program from Boston University. As the owner of Oak Trails Genealogy Services, LLC, she provides professional genealogical services in research, education, consultation, and speaking. Her research focuses on Midwestern and Southern states, methodology, lineage society applications, and DNA. Debbie is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists and the Genealogy Speakers Guild, as well as a number of national, state, and local societies.

DNA Doesn’t Lie, But Needs Help to Find the Truth!

DNA testing is a valuable tool for use in genealogical research. DNA provides confirmation of a genetic relationship; however, it requires the help of documentary research to confirm the genealogical relationship. This presentation reviews the differences between a genetic relationship and a genealogical relationship and demonstrates how pairing the two will strengthen your genealogical conclusions.

Schedule of Events

Saturday, May 18th, 2024

Agenda

11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.

Sara Cochran, “My DNA Brought Me to the Forest, but Where Are All the Trees?”

12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m.

Paula Williams, “Summon Your Inner Sherlock Holmes”

1:45 p.m. – 2:45 p.m.

Debbie Wilson Smyth, “DNA Doesn’t Lie, But Needs Help to Find the Truth!”

Click here to Register today – Registration closes May 11th.