Where does the time go? The National Genealogical Society is already planning the 2022 Family History Conference?
Yes, it is just a bit more than 12 months away, the perfect time to do the planning. OK, here is the announcement from the NGS:
NGS 2022 FAMILY HISTORY CONFERENCE
OUR AMERICAN MOSAIC
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA
DEADLINE FOR SUBMISSIONS–11:59 P.M. EDT ON 1 APRIL 2021
The National Genealogical Society 2022 Family History Conference, Our American Mosaic, will be held in Sacramento, California, 25-28 May 2022. The call for proposals opens on 1 December 2020 and closes on 1 April 2021 at 11:59 p.m. EDT.
Across the dramatic landscape that became America, our diverse ancestors each contributed a precious piece to the colorful design of our American mosaic. In the West, Native American cultures have thrived for thousands of years. While eighteenth-century American colonists were fighting for independence from Great Britain in the East, the Spanish were establishing missions and military outposts in what is now California. The discovery of gold near Sacramento in 1848 sparked a frenzy of migration to California from Asia, Mexico, and the eastern states. The lure of western skies has continued to the present day, attracting ranchers, Dust Bowl refugees, the Great Migration of African Americans from the South, immigrants fleeing poverty or persecution, and technology entrepreneurs.
Our family histories make each of us unique, and our separate stories are a shared history within our American mosaic. Attendees at the 2022 NGS Family History Conference in Sacramento will benefit from lectures and workshops to help build skills in methodology and the use of records and resources to advance their genealogical research.
Lecture Proposals
NGS encourages proposals on a variety of general and specific topics of interest to family historians from beginning to advanced levels. Conference tracks under consideration include the following:
- African American research: resources and techniques for researching African Americans in the western states, free people of color, the enslaved, post-slavery era documentation, and migration family stories
- Asian and Pacific Islander research: resources and techniques for researching Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Filipino, Southeast and South Asian, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander families, in the United States and abroad
- DNA: testing options, interpretation of results, case studies that incorporate methodology and DNA, and tools and techniques for identifying unknown biological parentage
- European and Middle Eastern research: records, repositories, and techniques for researching ancestors in Europe and the Middle East
- Hispanic and Latin American ancestry: resources and techniques for researching Hispanic and Latin American ancestry
- Immigration and migration: to the western states from overseas, New England, the Midwest, and the South
- Methodology: all aspects of family history methodology, from basic organizing tips to source documentation, planning, research techniques, and interpretation of findings
- Native American research: records and resources for First Nations, Inuit, and Native American family history
- New England research: records and repositories of New England states, with special emphasis on migrations to the West and the origins of early settlers
- Non-traditional families: topics and concerns related to researching lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and questioning (LGBTQ) individuals and families
- Records and repositories: the use of record types including but not limited to church, military, immigration, land, court, and vital records; the use and content of local, regional, and national record repositories
- Reference services: presentations by experts in libraries, archives, societies, and other repositories who assist family history researchers
- Society management: best practices, leadership, membership, programs, publications, disaster plans, and records preservation
- Technology: online databases, sites, and tools for accessing digitized record images, and computer applications for organizing and saving information
- The 1950s: specifically, the 1950 US federal census, which will be available shortly before the conference, and genealogically significant events of the 1950s
- Western states: history, records, and repositories in the western states as well as historical migrations from the 1600s to the present day
- Writing: skills, techniques, and tools for communicating family history information, from family blogs to peer-reviewed journals
NGS has a free webinar, Becoming a Better Conference Speaker: Proposals and Preparations, which can be found at the National Genealogical Society YouTube channel. Speakers are encouraged to view the video before beginning the proposal process. Topics covered include: Lecture Proposals, Presentation, Syllabus, Communicate, and Delivery.
NGS members will receive first consideration as speakers. Notifications for acceptance will be issued in the fall of 2021. Syllabus material, due 1 February 2022, is required for each lecture or workshop presentation and will be included in the syllabus distributed to all conference registrants. Speakers are expected to use electronic presentation programs and, provide their own digital projector, laptop, and connector to the projector cable. NGS will provide projector support, which consists of a VGA or HDMI cable, cart, and power strip. Internet connections will not be provided in lecture rooms.
Speakers who wish to submit lecture proposals may submit up to eight proposals electronically. The speaker compensation is described in detail here on the website. Each submitted proposal requires the following information:
- Speaker’s full name, mailing address, telephone, and email address
- Presentation title, not to exceed fourteen words
- Lecture summary for program brochure, not to exceed twenty-five words
- Brief but comprehensive lecture outline, not to exceed one page
- Speaker’s biography, not to exceed twenty-five words
- Speaker’s recent lecture experience, including a listing of national or regional conferences where the speaker has presented in the last two years
- Identification of the appropriate audience level: beginner, beginner-intermediate, intermediate, intermediate-advanced, advanced, or all
Do not submit a proposed lecture that has been presented nationally or regionally in the last two years, is scheduled to be presented before May 2022, or is available for free online.
Sponsored Lecture Proposals
If your genealogical organization would like to sponsor a lecture, submit proposals to NGS. If your organization would like to sponsor a luncheon, please contact [email protected]. Do not use the sponsored lecture form.