Dive into the world of NotebookLM, Google’s “personal AI-based research assistant,” and discover how it can supercharge your genealogical research. Imagine having an assistant that not only organizes your notes, books, journal articles, and original records but also helps you make connections and draw insights from them. In this session, we’ll explore how to maximize the productivity boost from NotebookLM, turning complex data into clear stories and actionable discoveries. Whether you’re managing stacks of family records or sifting through historical documents, NotebookLM could be the tool that transforms your research journey.
Audience level: All
Biography:
Robert Cameron Weir is a genealogical researcher, educator, and author who lives in Dover, New Hampshire. He specializes in hard problems related to New England genealogy, from 1620 to the present. He is a member of the Association for Professional Genealogists and is Vice President and Publications Director for the New Hampshire Society of Genealogists.
Journal Editors Office Hours offers prospective and current genealogy authors a unique opportunity to receive individualized, live feedback on their article submissions directly from experienced journal editors. Participants will submit their draft articles at least seven days prior to the event, allowing editors time for a thoughtful review.
During the event, each author will be scheduled for a private 15–20 minute one-on-one session with one of the two editors. These feedback sessions will take place in Zoom breakout rooms to ensure confidentiality and focused discussion. Editors will walk authors through suggested revisions, discuss strengths and areas for improvement, and answer questions about preparing an article for publication in a genealogical journal.
This event is ideal for writers seeking to strengthen their work, better understand editorial expectations, and gain confidence in the submission process.
Articles should be submitted by Thursday, September 3 rd to journal@mngs.org. We can accept a total of 10 articles for feedback. Upon receipt of your article, you will be sent a meeting link.
The 6-8 pm session will include 30 minutes of general Q&A and then 15 minute breakout sessions with each author.
Instructor: Paula Stuart Warren, Certified Genealogist®, FMGS, FUGA
Date: 12 September 2026 Time: 7:00-8:30 PM (CST)
In-person class at MGC
Cost:
$30.00 for members
$40.00 for non-members
Class size limited to 36
Description:
It’s not as simple as opening the refrigerator and seeing that the milk jug is almost empty. You simply add it to the shopping list. Planning our shopping list for genealogical research is more involved but not beyond reach. In our research, success improves with planning, discussion, and techniques that develop step-by-step research plans. We need to add the who, what, and where. Analyzing information, recognizing detail gaps, and creating research goals are key. No need to stare at a census, story, obituary, will, deed, or other item and stress about what’s next in the search. Learn steps to create a solid step-by-step research plan, including some audience participation. Tips and examples for creating such plan will be included in the presentation and handout. During this session we will work on some specific documents together and compile step-by-step research plans. These group exercises may show that you know more than you think!
Audience level: All
Biography:
Paula Stuart Warren is an educator, researcher, and consultant on manuscripts, methodology, analysis, Native Americans, WPA, and Railroads. Coordinator for GRIP and taught for Ancestry Academy, SLIG, and TIGR. Former Board member of MGS, FGS, former officer of APG and is a board-Certified Genealogist. http://genealogybypaula.com
Urban Research: Using Correlation of Data to Solve Family Mysteries Instructor: Jessica Fontana
Date:November 14, 2026 Time: 10:00 am - 11:30 am
In-person class at MGC
Cost:
$30.00 for members
$40.00 for non-members
Class size limited to 35
About the class:
This class will use case studies to focus on organizing your research, and combining analysis of data gathered to move the research forward and avoid the pitfalls of same-named people or people that disappear in the city. It will include use FAN club to follow the family group using different record types, including maps.
About the Instructor:
Jessica has a Master of Science degree in Extension Education from The Ohio State University, with specialized study in Adult Education Methods. She presented at the Minnesota Genealogical Society (MNGS) 2025 North Star Conference and the Upper Midwest Genealogical Institute hosted by MNGS, as well as the Allen County Public Library Genealogy Center and the Arkansas Genealogical Society. She is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the APG Forensic Genealogists Special Interest Group, the National Genealogical Society, and the Minnesota Genealogical Society. She is also a member of the Minnesota based Early Midwest Black Heritage Group; this collective is researching the state and region’s early Black pioneers (1840s-1900s).
Timelines for Organizing, Analyzing, and Breaking Down Brick Walls
Instructor: Karen Fortin
Date: 4 November 2026
Time: 7:00-8:15PM (CST)
Via ZOOM - Webinar
Description:
Timelines can be a valuable tool in genealogical research. This presentation will explore ways to create timelines and use them to organize an ancestor’s information, analyze this information for gaps or conflicts, help break through genealogical brick walls, and more.
Audience level: All
Biography:
Karen has given hundreds of genealogical presentations since 2016, both in-person and online for societies such as Southern California, Massachusetts, Western New York, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin. She presented webinars for Minnesota Genealogical Society in 2020, 2022, and 2024, and recently was chosen for one of the on-demand video presentations for the 2025 New York State Family History Conference, a live video presentation for the Utah Genealogical Society’s 2025 Virtual Conference, and as an in-person speaker at the 2025 New England Regional Genealogical Conference.
Learn to use religious records to find genealogical clues and stories about your relatives in Minnesota and the Midwest, whether they were Lutheran, Catholic, Methodist, or another of the many possible denominations. Get tips for identifying a family’s congregation; clues about ethnicity and affiliation; what kinds of migration clues may be found in church records and histories; and how to locate extant records. From the co-author of the award-winning book, How to Find Your Family History in U.S. Church Records and the author of the new volume, Searching for Sisters: Researching Catholic Nuns in the United States.
Audience level: All
Biography:
Sunny is an experienced instructor, in-person and online. She has taught at GRIP Genealogy Institute; SLIG; NGS; the Library of Congress; RootsTech and RootsTech London; and other events throughout the United States and beyond. She is an experienced online instructor with Family Tree University, Your DNA Guide—the Academy, and Legacy Family Tree Webinars and has given hundreds of webinars to societies and libraries.
