Coordinated by Angela Packer McGhie, CG, FUGA, the Advanced Evidence Analysis Practicum provides an opportunity for advanced genealogists to gain hands-on experience solving tough cases. Participants work on five complex genealogical research problems—a new one each week. This practicum is for you if you are an advanced researcher and want to gain experience conducting research on challenging problems, analyzing and correlating information, and writing conclusions.
You will practice using indirect evidence, broadening research to include the FAN club, resolving conflicts, and organizing evidence into a written summary. The research problems are varied, offering the challenge to stretch your mind and skills in new directions. You will work individually on the case each week and then gather to discuss your progress with classmates and the instructor. In addition, you will compare sources, strategies, and methodologies, discuss difficulties encountered, and receive guidance from the case study author.
Case Study Instructors:
Gary Ball-Kilbourne, PhD, CG
Nicole Gilkison LaRue, CG
Stephanie O'Connell, CG
Karen Stanbary, MA, LCSW, CG
Paul Woodbury, MEd, AG
This course is designed for advanced genealogists who have sufficient experience and education to work on complex genealogical problems. Most students plan 15–20 hours per week to work on the cases and write up a summary of findings.
Prerequisites:
An advanced-level methodology course such as:
SLIG—Advanced Genealogical Methods with Tom Jones or Paul Graham
IGHR—Advanced Genealogy and Evidence Analysis with Elizabeth Shown Mills or Judy Russell
GRIP—Advanced Genealogical Methods with Tom Jones
BYU Family History degree
NIGS certificate
Boston University Certificate in Genealogical Research
ProGen Study Group completion
OR
Equivalent experience:
Students may demonstrate their experience with genealogical research by submitting a paper detailing how they solved a genealogical problem. Please include source citations to support your conclusions. Students may register for the course and submit the paper for consideration by August 20.
Or students may submit a summary of their educational and research background instead of a report.
The Advanced Evidence Analysis Practicum will meet on Thursdays, 9:00 am to 11:00 am Mountain Time, September 7 through October 12.
Watch this interview in which course coordinator Angela Packer McGhie talks about the practicum:
You're a good writer and a great researcher. You have been told that by mentors, instructors, peers, and probably your family! But why does it seem like your written product sometimes doesn't work? Perhaps it is a case study, a client report, or a family narrative. It might have been during a course, a peer study group, or an institute setting that you struggled with putting it all together. If this sounds like you, then Assemblage: Preparing, Writing, and Revising Proof Arguments, coordinated by Jan Joyce, could be what you seek.
Assemblage is the writing, splicing, dicing, editing, and piecing together of your proof argument and other writing. You will want to take this course for a variety of reasons, including:
preparing for certification through BCG or accreditation through ICAPGen
fine-tuning articles for submission to journals
enhancing client reports
crafting work for sharing with family
writing proofs of kinship for attachment to online family trees.
Other faculty includes:
Shannon Green, CG
Debra Koehler
Cynthia Richardson
Kim Richardson
Course coordinator Jan Joyce talks about the Assemblage course in this interview:
Assemblage: Preparing, Writing, and Revising Proof Arguments will meet online on Wednesdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm Mountain Time, September 13 through November 15, 2023.
If you have a colonial dead-end from New England, the Mid-Atlantic, or the Carolinas, you might have a Quaker hiding in your family tree.
Although few in number, Quakers left a mountain of records, with many originals now available online. In this course explaining Quaker records in both the United States and the British Isles, you will learn of unique finding aids to help you locate records residing in on-site repositories. Discover how Quakers' historical origins and their views on the military and slavery affected their migration patterns across the U.S. Grasp how radical it was for women to play an equal role in a religion and its record keeping. Leave the course with a massive bibliography of Quaker records in print and online.
Faculty:
Steven W. Morrison, course coordinator
Annette Burke Little, MA
Discovering Quaker Records will meet online on Thursdays, 10:00 am to 2:00 pm Mountain Time, September 14 through November 16, 2023.
Proving Your Pedigree with DNA, coordinated by Karen Stanbary, MA, LCSW, CG, will guide you in applying your DNA analysis skills to the documentation of one of your ancestral lines back to a second great-grandparent couple. Learn to incorporate genetic evidence in a proof of parentage as part of a fully documented compiled genealogy meeting Genealogy Standards. Taught during SLIG Fall Virtual since 2021 and receiving excellent reviews, this is the intermediate-level course you need.
Highlights of the course:
Practical step-by-step examples
Hands-on practice with your own DNA results and research project
Private one-on-one consultations with expert faculty members.
By the end of the course you will have:
A source-cited lineage, including proof of biological parentage that meets Genealogy Standards
A graphic descendant tree
A unique, student-generated "Golden Nuggets" Quicksheet.
Prerequisites: This is an intermediate methodology course focusing on autosomal DNA. This course will not cover beginning DNA topics such as inheritance patters, tools, and references. The prerequisites require previous completion of the following full-week institute courses at any genealogical institute in two categories:
An intermediate-level methodology course such as:
Intermediate Foundations
Intermediate Genealogy and Historical Studies
Digging Deeper: Records, Tools, and Skills
AND
A DNA course such as:
Beginning DNA
Introduction to Genetic Genealogy
Practical Genetic Genealogy
All-DNA Evidence Analysis Practicum
If a registrant does not meet the prerequisites, a work sample that correlates genetic and documentary sources to establish a conclusion meeting the Genealogical Proof Standard may be submitted for consideration.
Completion of this course will serve as a prerequisite for the advanced DNA courses offered at SLIG and IGHR.
Additional faculty includes:
Nicole Dyer
Thomas W. Jones, PhD, CG, FASG, FUGA, FNGS
Rebecca Whitman Koford, CG, CGL
Angela Packer McGhie, CG, FUGA
Paul Woodbury, MEd, AG
Jennifer Armstrong Zinck, CG
Watch this interview as Debra Hoffman shares her experience in the Proving Your Pedigree with DNA course:
Proving Your Pedigree with DNA will meet online on Friday's, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Mountain Time, September 29 through November 3, 2023 (no class on October 20).
Back by popular demand! This is a practicum course constructed specifically for intermediate-level genealogists. Come test your skills in a guided practicum course.
Intermediate Evidence Analysis Practicum, coordinated by Angela Packer McGhie, CG, FUGA, provides step-by-step guidance for engaging in genealogical research through hands-on experience solving two research problems. This course features a combination of individual work toward solving a case, as is typical in the SLIG advanced practicum, along with group work on research planning and instruction on analysis strategies for touch cases.
Participants will put their research skills into practice while receiving structure and guidance. Students will work together to analyze background information and create a research plan for each case, and then conduct individual research online, track findings, analyze and correlate information, and report conclusions.
The weekly sessions permit time for students to conduct research on a case, gather to discuss their progress with classmates, conduct further research, and learn to write up conclusions. Students should plan to spend ten to twenty hours per week researching the cases to get the most out of the course.
This course is perfect for genealogists who are not quite ready for the challenge of the Advanced Evidence Analysis Practicum course or anyone who wants to work through each step of a case with guidance.
Faculty includes Angela Packer McGhie, CG, FUGA, and Karen Stanbary, MA, LCSW, CG.
Intermediate Evidence Analysis Practicum is scheduled to meet online on Thursdays 9:00 am to 1:30 pm Mountain Time, October 19 through November 16, 2023.
Watch this interview in which course coordinator Angela Packer McGhie talks about the practicum:
Do you already has some experience in genealogy, either self-taught or from a beginner's course? Are you looking to enhance your research skills from home around your busy schedule? Are you looking for a course that will lead you into an intermediate skill level and prepare you for more advanced genealogical education and research? Then check out the Intermediate Foundations course offered during SLIG Fall Virtual 2023!
Coordinated by Annette Burke Lyttle, MA, this course provides an in-depth institute course to elevate your knowledge and skills. You will expand your ability to find and analyze a number of record types and learn to conduct research using best practices and following genealogical standards.
You will gain experience in your new skills through homework involving original records. In addition, a closed Facebook group will provide further conversation with participants and instructors.
Additional instructors for this course include:
Angie Bush, MS
Angela Packer McGhie, CG, FUGA
Nancy A. Peters, CG, CGL
Gena Philibert-Ortega, MA, MAR
Kimberly T. Powell
Judy G. Russell, JD, CG, CGL
Michael L. Strauss, AG
Rich Venezia
Intermediate Foundations will meet online Wednesdays, 5:00 pm to 9:00 pm Mountain Time, September 13 through November 15, 2023.
Watch this video in which Taralyn Frost Parker shares her experience in the Intermediate Foundations course:
Course coordinator Annette Burke Lyttle talks about the course in this interview:
Are you starting from scratch with figuring out DNA? Or do you Have a basic handle on genetic genealogy and want to move towards an intermediate level of knowledge and skill? Do you want to master the basics of genetic genealogy research? Then this is the course for you!
Introduction to Genetic Genealogy, coordinated by Paul Woodbury, MEd, AG, is a hands-on course guiding participants through applications in various investigative contexts. Participants will practice basic interpretation of Y-DNA, mitochondrial DNA, X-DNA, and autosomal DNA evidence within the context of traditional document research. In addition, students will receive written feedback on weekly homework assignments, in-class lab assistance, and a 15-minute DNA consultation to review a DNA goal and related results, and outline a research plan.
Faculty include:
Angie Bush, MS
Melissa A. Johnson, CG
Gretchen Jorgensen
Leah Larkin, PhD
Dana Leeds
Karen Stanbary, MA, LCSW, CG
Tanner Tolman
This course requires that students have intermediate-level experience in document-based genealogical research and access to the autosomal DNA test results of at least one individual at one of the major DNA testing companies (23andMe, Ancestry, Family Tree DNA, MyHeritage).
Introduction to Genetic Genealogy will meet online on Thursday, 8:00 am to 4:30 pm Mountain Time, September 14 through October 19, 2023. (No class October 12.)
Watch this interview in which Paul Woodbury talks about the course.
Hive Minders make our virtual classrooms function smoothly, addressing challenges that arise. If you are comfortable with technology, consider applying to serve during one of the courses offered during SLIG Fall Virtual 2023.
Hive Minder job responsibilities include:
starting Zoom for each weekly class session;
managing closed captioning, breakout rooms, polls, and recordings;
assisting faculty and students with light tech and announcements;
taking attendance with the provided Airtable attendance tracker;
keeping SLIG staff aware of classroom and student issues or concerns.
Hive Minders receive:
a tuition waiver for the course for which they serve as Hive Minder;
training to be a Hive Minder;
a Hive Minder reference packet;
assistance and support from SLIG's Virtual Coordinator, Tech Assistant, and Director for emergencies and questions.
Courses offered during SLIG Fall Virtual 2023 may be viewed here.
To apply to be a Hive Minder during SLIG Fall Virtual 2023, please complete the application at this Airtable link. The deadline for applying is May 1, 2023. All applicants will receive notification via email whether they have been selected.
A separate call for Hive Minders during SLIG 2024 and SLIG Spring Virtual 2024 will arrive in June.
Did we mention that Hive Minders receive a tuition waiver?
