Board for Certification of Genealogists Announces Election Results

The Board for Certification of Genealogists welcomes two returning and four new trustees:

Returning trustees:

Allen R. Peterson, AG®, CG®, of Texas. Board-certified in 2007, Allen is co-editor of the National Genealogical Society Quarterly (NGSQ) and a trustee for the BCG. He began researching in England in the early-to-middle 1990s and has published numerous articles on English genealogy in the NGSQ. He recently completed a two-year term as vice president of the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History (ISBGFH). He served as the Director of the Katy, Texas, Family History Center from 1999 to 2016. Allen is a member of the Association of Professional Genealogists (APG), the National Genealogical Society (NGS), the Houston Genealogical Forum (HGF), the Society of Genealogists in London (SoG), the Derbyshire Family History Society, the Manchester and Lancashire Family History Society, and the ISBGFH. He holds BS and MS degrees from Brigham Young University in geology and retired from Apache Corporation as a petroleum geologist in 2017, after working forty-two years in the oil and gas industry.

Karen Stanbary, MA, LCSW, CG®, of Illinois. Board-certified since 2016, Karen served as a trustee for the past three years. A founding member of the DNA committee, she now chairs the DNA committee and led the work to draft the DNA-related standards published in 2019. Karen coordinates DNA courses and is a frequent lecturer at genealogical institutes. As a LCSW, Karen aids genealogists who seek advice on the management of surprises in DNA test results. Her genealogical practice specializes in midwestern US, Chicago, and Mexican research as well as complex problem-solving, unknown parentage, and DNA analysis. Karen received the 2016 NGSQ Award for Excellence for her complex evidence case study incorporating autosomal DNA analysis. She is a contributing author to Advanced Genetic Genealogy: Techniques and Case Studies, edited by Debbie Parker Wayne.

Newly elected trustees:

Shannon Green, CG®, of Colorado. Board-certified in 2017, Shannon is a genealogy researcher, writer, and educator. Her present research focus is illuminating the lives of her female ancestors. She is a BCG representative to the Records Preservation and Access Committee (RPAC), and trustee and treasurer of the BCG Education Fund. Shannon is a certificant of Genealogical Research from Boston University (2014), and an alumna of the National Genealogical Society Home Study Course (2015), and the ProGen study program (2016). She currently instructs in the Boston University Genealogy Studies Program and mentors a ProGen Study Group. She has published in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, the National Genealogical Society Magazine, the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society Record, and regional magazines and journals. Shannon recently moved from Connecticut to Colorado with her husband and three school-age children.

Melinda Daffin Henningfield, CG®, of Oregon. Board-certified in 2013, Melinda serves as a member of the BCG DNA Committee. A full-time author, lecturer, and genealogist, Melinda focuses on solving complex problems of identity. She has published in OnBoard, UGA Crossroads, and the NGS Quarterly. She has instructed at SLIG and lectured at local, regional, and national conferences. Melinda holds a BA degree in history education from the University of West Florida, BS and MS degrees in nursing from the University of Tennessee and the Oregon Health Sciences University, and a certificate as a nurse practitioner. Melinda credits her previous career for preparing her to use a methodological and evidence-based approach to genealogical problem solving.

Faye Jenkins Stallings, CG®, of Texas. Board certified in 2018, Faye is an avid genealogist conducting family history research in the South for more than thirty years. She currently serves as president of the Federation of Genealogical Societies and board member of her local Montgomery County Genealogical and Historical Society. She is the director of the Family History Center in Conroe, Texas. She is the principal genealogist of Southern Hearts Genealogy. In her prior professional career, she was a certified public accountant and has held various corporate positions with a Fortune 100 company, including assistant corporate controller, subsidiary controller, and chief financial officer, general auditor and chief ethics officer. She also served as a volunteer for the Houston Chapter of the Institute of Internal Auditors in a number of positions, including chapter governance task force member, president, and board member. Faye is now very happily retired, and enjoys spending more time with her family, both the living and the dead.

Mary O’Brien Vidlak, CG®, of Virginia. Board-certified in 2016, Mary is an avid reader who loves learning new things. This combination makes genealogy a perfect activity. She has attended at least one institute every year for the last ten years and regularly goes to local, state, and national conferences. She is particularly interested in understanding the impact of religion on the lives of her ancestors. Mary has served on the Virginia Genealogical Society board since 2014 and has served as the Society’s president since July 2019. She was co-editor of BCG’s SpringBoard 2016–2018. An undergraduate degree in English and a career in human resources have turned out to be unexpectedly useful skills in family history.

All fifteen trustees are board-certified, and all serve without compensation. Six were elected this year by certified associates. The new trustees’ terms of office will begin at the end of the October 5, 2020, trustees’ virtual meeting.

The words Certified Genealogist and letters CG are registered certification marks, and the designations CGL and Certified Genealogical Lecturer are service marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists^®, used under license by board certificants after periodic evaluation.