NERGC is excited to have two excellent speakers as our Featured Speakers for the 2027 Conference. Below is a short biography for each speaker. We will update this site with information on the presentations once they are available.
Blaine Bettinger, PhD., J.D.
Blaine Bettinger, Ph.D., J.D., is a professional genealogist specializing in DNA evidence. In 2007 he started The Genetic Genealogist (www.thegeneticgenealogist.com), one of the earliest blogs on the topic. Blaine is the author of The Family Tree Guide to DNA Testing and Genetic Genealogy, and co-author with Debbie Parker Wayne of the award-winning Genetic Genealogy in Practice, the world’s first genetic genealogy workbook. He also co-authored “Genetics for Genealogy” with Judy Russell in 2018’sProfessional Genealogy: Preparation, Practice & Standards (ProGen PPS)(Elizabeth Shown Mills, Author and Editor).
Blaine is or has been an instructor for genetic genealogy courses at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR),Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG),Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP), and Virtual Institute of Genealogical Research. Blaine is a graduate of ProGen Study Group 21, a trustee for the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, and a member of the DNAngels Board of Directors since 2022 (President since January 2023). He is also the founder in 2017 of Genetic Genealogy Tips & Techniques, a very active Facebook group with approximately 90,000 members.
Mark Thompson
Mark’s career journey includes higher education, high tech, and the corporate IT world. These experiences developed and honed his technical, analytical, and communication skills.
His career path set the perfect stage for helping others make their best family history, particularly in today’s increasingly high-tech genealogy world.
Mark is passionate about staying up to date on the rapidly changing world of genealogy and using these changes to help his clients uncover, understand, and connect with their family mysteries.
Mark is equally dedicated to helping family history enthusiasts stay up to date on the best of these changes and show them how to use them in their own history-making efforts.
When he’s not helping others, Mark can be found looking at the world through a camera lens, capturing moments that words alone can’t.
Occasionally, he finds time to work on his own family history.
