Course Coordinator and Instructors – TIGR 2021: June 13-18, 2021
Deborah A. Abbott, PhD
Deborah A. Abbott, PhD, is a professional genealogist specializing in African American research, manuscript collections, and genealogy methodology. She is a Trustee on the Board of the Ohio Genealogical Society (OGS), a member of the Cuyahoga County Archives Advisory Commission in Cleveland, and previously served on the Board of Directors for the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS). She is an associate with the Kentucky-Tennessee Associates based in Springfield, TN, past president of the African American Genealogical Society, Cleveland, Ohio, and a retired professor of Counseling from Cuyahoga Community College in Cleveland. She holds both the BS and MEd degrees from Tuskegee University in Alabama and the PhD degree from Kent State University in Ohio.
Dr. Abbott is an instructor at the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research (IGHR), the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogical Research (SLIG), and the African American Genealogy Colloquium at Alabama State University in Montgomery, AL. She presents lectures and workshops at a variety of national, state, and local genealogy conferences across the country as well as colleges, businesses, and libraries. She has had articles published in the Ohio Genealogy News and Family Tree Magazine. Dr. Abbott can also be seen teaching African American research entitled Needles & Threads on Ancestry Academy, an educational video course for Ancestry.com.
Dr. Abbott is a member of NGS, APG, GSG, as well as other state and local genealogical societies. She teaches monthly classes entitled “Using Ancestry.com in Genealogy Research” at the Lakewood (Ohio) Public Library and coordinates/teaches the “Genealogy and Family History Clinic” for the Cleveland Public Library.
A Cleveland native, she is a life member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Inc., the Tuskegee University National Alumni Association, and Antioch Baptist Church.
Henrietta Martinez Christmas
Henrietta Martinez Christmas, a native New Mexican, is a well-known genealogical and historical researcher; she descends from eleven of the soldiers that came with Oñate in 1598. She has written several books related to New Mexico’s small towns and history and over 175 articles about New Mexico’s Colonial Families. She is a long-time member and the current President of the New Mexico Genealogical Society. She has worked with the History Museum of New Mexico, The Albuquerque Museum, and The El Camino Real Heritage site in preparing exhibits and researching historical data. Henrietta is a frequent contributor to author’s books in terms of researching biographies of individuals. She works with a group that honors historic women in New Mexico for their NM Historic Marker Program. Honored by the DAR for historic preservation, she has extracted and transcribed records for over 50 books, which in total consist of hundreds of thousands of records.
Frank de la Teja, PhD
Frank de la Teja is Regents’ Professor Emeritus and University Distinguished Professor Emeritus of History at Texas State University in San Marcos. He obtained the Ph.D. in Latin American history from the University of Texas at Austin, and between 1985 and 1991 he worked in the Archives and Records Division of the Texas General Land Office.
In 2018-2020 he served as Chief Executive Officer of the Texas State Historical Association. He has published extensively on Spanish, Mexican, and Republic-era Texas including the award-winning San Antonio de Béxar: A Community on New Spain’s Northern Frontier and most recently Faces of Béxar: Writings on Early San Antonio and Texas and Recollections of a Tejano Life: Antonio Menchaca in Texas History.
He served as book review editor for the Southwestern Historical Quarterly from 1997 to 2014 and as managing editor of Catholic Southwest: A Journal of History and Culture from 1991 to 2005. He has served on the board of directors and as president of the Texas State Historical Association. Among his service activities in the area of history education, he was part of the content development team for the Bob Bullock Texas State History Museum from 1998 to 2001, served as an expert reviewer of the Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills Social Studies standards for the State Board of Education in 2009-2010, and was a member of the Humanities Texas board of directors 2011-2016.
He was the inaugural State Historian of Texas (2007-2009), is a Fellow of the Texas State Historical Association and the Texas Catholic Historical Society, and is a member of the Texas Institute of Letters and the Philosophical Society of Texas.
He is both an honorary admiral in the Texas Navy and an honorary member of the Sons of the Republic of Texas. In 2009, he was honored with the Captain Alonso de León Medal for Merit in History—International category from the Historical, Geographical, and Statistical Society of Nuevo León. In 2017, the San Jacinto Battleground Conservancy named him a Hero of San Jacinto.
Sharon Gillins
Sharon Batiste Gillins is a native of Galveston, Texas, with paternal ancestral roots in St. Mary Parish, Louisiana, and maternal roots in Fort Bend County, Texas. A life-long interest in her family’s history led to an active involvement in genealogical research over the past 25 years. Ms. Gillins earned a Bachelor’s degree at Howard University and a Master’s Degree at the University of the District of Columbia. Her career spans over 40 years in education, retiring as Associate Professor at Riverside Community College. She frequently calls upon her career background as a college educator to present workshops and deliver courses at regional and national genealogy conferences, among them the National Genealogical Society, Federation of Genealogical Societies, International Black Genealogical Summit, and the Creole Family History Conference. She has served as adjunct faculty at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research since 2006 and was recently faculty for the Alabama State University Genealogy Colloquium in Montgomery. Ms. Gillins’ research and teaching emphasize strategies that can be used to discover details of Southern life and ancestry in the 19th century, including the lives of planter slave owners, enslaved people and free people of color in underutilized sources. Favorite record groups and teaching topics include Freedmen’s Bureau Field Office records, Southern Claims Commission records, conveyance records, and records of incarceration.
At present, Ms. Gillins is a Research Associate at the Mary Moody Northern Endowment in Galveston, Texas, where she is responsible for the Moody family and business archive of manuscripts and photographs that date to the early 1800s. She is also a consultant in the placement of historically significant hidden family manuscripts with appropriate library special collections for preservation, conservation, and researcher access.
Teri E. Flack
A 6th generation Texan, Teri E. Flack is a genealogy and historical researcher, consultant, and lecturer specializing in research methodology, Southern research, and finding Texas ancestors. Teri is a fellow of the Texas State Genealogical Society. She chairs the TxSGS Records Preservation and Access Committee and serves as the Texas state liaison to the national RPAC. Teri serves on the Texas Historical Records Advisory Board, a state-level board dedicated to the preservation and use of Texas’ documentary heritage. She is also a member of the Travis County Historical Commission, serving as the county’s Historical Marker Chair. As a volunteer archivist at the Texas State Archives, Teri is currently processing Galveston County records to make them accessible to the public.
Patti Lee Hobbs, CG®
Patti Lee Hobbs, CG®, works as a part-time professional genealogist as well as occasionally in the Local History & Genealogy department at the Springfield-Greene County Library in Springfield, Missouri. Patti, with a BA in biology, instructs on the use and analysis of DNA testing and how it complements traditional research in original records. She volunteers as a trustee of the Board for Certification of Genealogists and a BCG Education Fund trustee. Patti has taught in several institute courses for IGHR and GRIP. Her article “DNA Identifies a Father for Rachel Lee of Huntingdon County, Pennsylvania” was published in the March 2017 issue of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly. Patti is passionate about genealogical education and helping others learn more about their ancestors.
Colleen Robledo Greene, MLIS
Colleen Robledo Greene, MLIS, is a librarian, genealogist, historian, college educator, and web developer. She is a nationally recognized genealogy speaker and educator specializing in methodology, Mexican & Hispanic research, libraries and archives, technology, and society communications.
Colleen holds a Bachelor of Arts in History, a Master of Library & Information Science, and a certificate in genealogical research from Boston University. She is the Digital Literacy Librarian & Marketing Librarian at California State University, Fullerton. Colleen is also a lecturer for the San Jose State University School of Information, where she teaches an online graduate-level U.S. genealogy course for future librarians, which focuses on the Genealogical Proof Standard.
Colleen has been researching her family history since her grandfather died in 1997. Most of her personal research focuses on Mexico, California, and Texas.
She is an active member and volunteer in the genealogy community.
Shamele Jordon
Shamele Jordon is a professional genealogist, producer, writer, and lecturer. Her biographical highlights include: award winning TV producer of Genealogy Quick Start; 2018 Best Independent Producer, Instructional/Training, presented by Alliance for Community Media; 2017 Learning Award Cammy presented by PhillyCAM, Philadelphia’s public access station; 2019 Lawnside Education Foundation honoree; researcher for the PBS series Oprah’s Roots: African American Lives I and II; NJ State Library grant recipient, researching Civil War Burials in Lawnside, NJ; board member and faculty at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research, University of Athens, GA; former president of the African American Genealogy Group in Philadelphia; and workshop volunteer at the Family History Center in Cherry Hill, NJ.
Kevin Klaus
Kevin Klaus developed a love of history from an early age while listening to stories told by his great-grandparents and grandparents who grew up in East Texas. He has a background in anthropology, archaeology, and public history from the University of New Mexico and is currently working towards becoming a certified genealogist. For the last 18 years, Kevin has served as one of the lead researchers in the Texas General Land Office Archives and Records Program Area. During his time at the Land Office, he has searched the early Court of Claims files, German Collection, and archival collection to learn more about the history of Texas and discover the amazing collection of personal letters of early soldiers and pioneers who helped settle our great state. Over the last few years, Kevin has focused his attention and research on the German Collection and the early German settlers that came to Texas under the Adelsverein in the 1840s. In the process, he has honed his research skills by tracing his own family line that came to America in the late 1800s.
Dana Leeds
Dana Leeds worked with DNA as an undergraduate at the University of Oklahoma’s Health Sciences Center in the early 1990s and later taught middle school science following completion of her BS in Biology Education from the University of Central Oklahoma. She became interested in genealogy in 1998 when she began working with her own families. In recent years, she has combined her passions for science, genealogy, and education as a process innovator, blogger, and speaker focusing on genetic genealogy and its value in working with traditional genealogy brick walls as well as unknown parentage cases.
She is internationally known for her pioneering genetic genealogy process, the Leeds Method, which visually organizes DNA matches into clusters often showing four grandparent lines. This process allows the researcher to focus on a specific section of their family tree. She has shared this method and its benefits at i4GG’s International Genetic Genealogy Conference, RootsTech, and the Association of Professional Genealogists’ annual conference as well as with local, regional, and online organizations. Dana enjoys taking the mystery out of DNA by putting powerful, user-friendly tools into the hands of genealogists of all skill levels.
J. Mark Lowe, FUGA
J. Mark Lowe describes himself as a lifelong genealogist. He is a full-time professional genealogist, author, and lecturer who specializes in original records and manuscripts throughout the South. Mark lives in Robertson County, Tennessee just north of Nashville near the Kentucky border.
Mark enjoys opportunities to share what he has learned over the years. He serves as the Course Coordinator for “Research in the South” at IGHR (Georgia Genealogical Society), webinars for Legacy Family Tree Webinars, and also directs Southern courses for the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG). He has worked on several genealogical television series including Finding Your Past, African American Lives 2, Who Do You Think You Are? and UnXplained Events, and provided content for podcasts on Gimlet Media, including Twice Removed.
Mark has published in the Association of Professional Genealogists Quarterly (APGQ), National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ), the Genealogical Speakers’ Guild SPEAK!, The Longhunter (So. Ky. Genealogical Society), the Middle Tennessee Genealogical Society Quarterly and other society publications. He formerly was President of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), President for the Federation of Genealogical Societies (FGS), and President of the Southern Kentucky Genealogical Society. Mark is a Fellow of the Utah Genealogical Society and was awarded the Graham T. Smallwood award by the Association of Professional Genealogists.
Kelvin L. Meyers
Kelvin L. Meyers, a fifth generation Texan and professional forensic genealogist since 1996, is a frequent speaker to genealogical societies and family associations throughout the United States. He is a founding member for the Council for the Advancement of Forensic Genealogy (CAFG), a past board member of the Association of Professional Genealogist, and a past President of the Lone Star Chapter of APG. After being employed for ten years in the Genealogy Department of the Dallas Public Library, Kelvin now has a solo practice as a forensic genealogist serving clients that include probate attorneys, trust departments of banks, the US Immigration Service and energy companies. He also specializes in southern brick wall problems for clients. Kelvin is a 1989 and 1990 alumni of the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research at Samford University and has returned to IGHR as a lecturer. In 2016 he co-coordinated with J. Mark Lowe, “A Swing Through the South” at SLIG (Salt Lake Institute of Genealogical Research). Kelvin has recently published Research in Texas for the NGS (National Genealogical Society) Research in the States series. Kelvin is also the director of the Texas Institute of Genealogical Research (TIGR), a Texas State Genealogical Society event.
Tim Pinnick
Timothy N. Pinnick is an accomplished researcher, popular national speaker, and author of the book, “Finding and Using African American Newspapers.”
Tim is the author of more than half a dozen articles including “Using an Extended Research Project to Reconstruct a Community” which appeared in the Association for Professional Genealogists Quarterly, “Answers in African American Newspapers” written for Family Tree Magazine, and most recently “The Carnegie Medal” in NGS Magazine.
Pinnick has authored and delivered several historical papers including at the Western Historical Association conference in Salt Lake City, Utah. Other papers were delivered at the Association for the Study of African American Life and History, Association for African American Historical Research and Preservation, and the Illinois History Conference.
He has taught as part of the prestigious faculty at the summer Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR) as part of the faculty in the course “Researching African American Ancestors.” Tim accepted an assignment in 2013 as part of the inaugural Midwestern African American Genealogy Institute staff. There he served as an instructor in the Pre- and Post-Emancipation Records track.
Pinnick is a member of numerous historical and genealogical associations, and served on the board of the Federation of Genealogical Societies.
The 1976 Illinois state high school long jump champion, he was a four year athletic scholarship recipient at Illinois State University and a 1980 Olympic Trials qualifier in the long jump. He can be reached via e-mail at: blackminers@yahoo.com.
Jennifer Stone Randolph, MSc
Jennifer Stone Randolph holds a BA in Anthropology and an MSc in Epidemiology. She is a professional genealogist with a focus on northern New England family research and the use of DNA evidence for resolving cases of unknown parentage and identity. Jennifer also works as a Research Scientist at Dartmouth College’s Geisel School of Medicine and Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center.
In addition to performing genealogical research for clients, Jennifer lectures throughout New England and is a member of many of the area’s regional genealogical societies as well as the Association of Professional Genealogists. Jennifer holds certificates in Genealogical Research (Boston University) and Genetic Genealogy (Excelsior College) and has completed the ProGen Study Program, the Genealogical Institute on Federal Records (Gen-Fed), the Advanced Genetic Genealogy course of the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP), and the Advanced Methodology & Evidence Analysis course at the Institute of Genealogy & Historical Research (IGHR).
John Sellers
John A. Sellers, a fifth generation native to Hopkins County, Texas, graduated from Texas Tech University with a degree in advertising/public relations and received his teaching certificate in history from Texas A & M, Commerce. A genealogical researcher since 1985, John’s favorite area of research is in the courthouse. He has visited courthouses in several southern states and has conducted extensive research in Texas and Louisiana.
John is an active member of the Hopkins County Genealogical Society and has served fifteen years on the executive board and as President, 1997-1998, 2017. He was a speaker at the FGS National Conference in 1997 and 2004 and at NGS in 1994. He has been the featured speaker for more than 65 all-day seminars located in Texas, Louisiana, Arkansas, New Mexico, and Oklahoma. John has given over 275 programs on genealogy and history. He was the featured speaker at the DRT Genealogical Conference at the Alamo in 2002, 2003, and 2011, and also the Louisiana Historical and Genealogical Seminar in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, 2007 and 2011. He has been a faculty member for the Angelina College Genealogy Conference, 1999-2014, and was a featured instructor at the Texas Institute of Genealogical Research in 2017 and 2019. He has completed Genealogy as a Profession, Advanced Methodology, and Advanced Library Research courses at the Institute of Genealogical and Historical Research, Samford University. John was a lecturer at the Institute of Genealogical Research at Samford University in 2009, 2010, 2014, and at the University of Georgia in 2018. He compiled an addendum to the 1850 Census of Hopkins County, Texas.
He is an Assistant Vice President – Director of Marketing with City National Bank of Sulphur Springs. John is Mayor of Sulphur Springs and is serving his third term on the City Council.
Franklin Carter Smith
Franklin Carter Smith is currently a Senior Library Service Specialist at the Clayton Library Center for Genealogical Research, a special collections library of the Houston Public Library. He’s been engaged in family history research nearly 40 years. A licensed attorney, he practiced law for thirteen years before joining the library.
His specialty area is African American research, with a specific interest in the enslavement era. He co-authored with Emily Anne Croom A Genealogists Guide to Discovering your African-American Ancestors. He has also written several articles for Family Tree Magazine and presented talks to numerous Texas groups and organizations on African American Family History research and DNA.
Brian Stauffer, PhD
Brian A. Stauffer was born in Afton, Wyoming. He holds a Ph.D. in Latin American History from the University of Texas at Austin and an M.A. in Latin American History from the University of New Mexico. His research focuses on the religious and agrarian history of Mexico and Mexican Texas in the nineteenth century. His book, Victory on Earth or in Heaven Mexico’s Religionero Rebellion, was published by the University of New Mexico Press in 2019. Since 2016, he has served as the Translator and Curator of the Spanish Collection at the Texas General Land Office.
Debbie Parker Wayne, CG
Debbie is a board-certified genealogist experienced using DNA analysis, as well as more traditional techniques, for genealogical research. Debbie edited the award-winning book and authored one chapter of Advanced Genetic Genealogy: Techniques and Case Studies; coauthored the award-winning DNA workbook, Genetic Genealogy in Practice; and developed the online, self-paced course, Continuing Genealogical Studies: Autosomal DNA, offered by the National Genealogical Society. She is the DNA Project Chair for the Texas State Genealogical Society, guiding the Early Texans DNA Project, which focuses on autosomal, Y-DNA, and mtDNA of descendants of those who arrived in Texas prior to statehood. She writes the “Genetic Genealogy Journey” column for NGS Magazine and has done so since 2013.
Debbie was the first course coordinator for Genetics for Genealogists: Beginning DNA and Tools and Techniques for Genetic Genealogy at the Institute for Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR), Practical Genetic Genealogy at the Genealogical Research Institute of Pittsburgh (GRIP), and Getting Started with Genetic Genealogy at the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG). She was a frequent DNA instructor for the Forensic Genealogy Institute sponsored by the Council for the Advancement of Forensic Genealogy. She has presented at the National Genealogical Society and Federation of Genealogical Societies conferences, International Genetic Genealogy Conference, Angelina College (Lufkin, Texas) Genealogy Conference, Family Tree DNA Project Administrator’s Conference, Southern California Jamboree DNA Day, and other courses and workshops on genetic genealogy and traditional research.
Debbie won second place in the Texas State Genealogical Society’s Writing Competition 2016 for Genetic Genealogy in Practice co-authored with Blaine T. Bettinger, won second place in the Dallas Genealogical Society’s “Writing Competition 2012,” and won third place in the International Society of Family History Writers and Editors’ “2012 Excellence in Writing Competition.” She also edited the award-winning book and authored one chapter of Advanced Genetic Genealogy: Techniques and Case Studies.
Her other publications include articles in Texas State Genealogical Society’s journal Stirpes, NGS Magazine, APG Quarterly, Digital Genealogist, Dallas Genealogical Society’s journal Pegasus, New Mexico State Genealogical Society’s journal, and others. Debbie has worked on multiple genealogical television series, including the Canadian series Ancestors in the Attic, the PBS series Finding Your Roots, and Who Do You Think You Are?.
Debbie’s DNA research focuses on research into her own family project which includes Y-DNA, mtDNA, X-DNA, and autosomal DNA studies. Her traditional research focuses on Texas, the Southwest, and the Southern U.S. She is a past Trustee for the BCG Education Fund, a past board member and Advocacy Committee Chair of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), and past president of the Lone Star Chapter of APG.
She has coordinated or taught at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research (IGHR) and the Salt Lake Institute of Genealogy (SLIG).
Ari Wilkins
Ari Wilkins, a graduate of Louisiana State University, has been actively researching family history since 1998. Ari worked with the esteemed genealogist, Dr. James Rose, for many years on his final project Generations: The WPA Ex-Slave Narrative Database. She is the owner of the genealogical consulting company, Black Genesis. Ari also works as a contributor for Proquest’s African American Heritage database. Ari has instructed at the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research. She has been a conference speaker at the National Genealogical Society, Federation of Genealogical Societies, Texas State Genealogical Society, Ohio Genealogical Society, American Library Association, and has lectured at a multitude of local societies. Ari has been a Library Associate at Dallas Public Library since 2007. She specializes in African American research and has lectured on African American migration.