About NGS

NGS Board of Directors

The Board of Directors of the National Genealogical Society consists of the elected officers (president, vice president, secretary, and treasurer), eight directors, and the most recent former president willing to serve.

Article VII of the National Genealogical Society Bylaws details the responsibilities of the Board of Directors.

NGS Board Members

Position	Name	Home State	Term Expires
President	Ann Christnacht Hilke, cg	North Carolina	2012
Vice President	Julie Potter Miller, cg	Colorado	2012
Secretary	Barbara Renick	California	2012
Treasurer	Jean F. Atkinson Andrews	South Carolina	2012
Director Area 1	To be filled		2014
Director Area 2	David McDonald, cg	Wisconsin	2014
Director Area 3	Richard Camaur, jd, cg	Virginia	2012
Director Area 4	To be filled		2012
Director at Large	Arlene V. Jennings, cg	New York	2014
Director at Large	Stefani Evans	Nevada	2012
Director at Large	Everett Ireland, cg	California	2012
Director at Large	David Ouimette, cg	Utah	2014
Director	Jordan Jones	North Carolina	2012
Past President	Janet A. Alpert	Michigan

President: Ann Christnacht Hilke, cg^*
North Carolina

Vice President: Julie Potter Miller, CG
Colorado

Julie Potter Miller, cg, is a professional genealogy researcher, lecturer, and writer. She was elected to the NGS Board as director-at-large in 2006 and is conference chair for the NGS 2010 and 2012 Family History Conferences. Julie is past president of the Colorado Genealogical Society, Colorado Chapter APG, Broomfield Genealogical Society, and has served on the APG board of directors. She writes a monthly column for the Broomfield Enterprise and was the winner of the 2010 International Society of Family History Writers and Editors Excellence in Writing for Newspapers Columns Award. She is a contributor to numerous genealogical publications, both locally and nationally, is coordinator for Broomfield County USGenWeb, and has been a volunteer at the National Archives–Rocky Mountain Region since 1996. 

Secretary: Barbara Renick
California

Barbara Renick began teaching PAF and computer genealogy classes in 1985. She frequently lectures on research topics and teaches computer labs at national conferences and at the Regional Family History Center in Orange, California. Over the years, Barbara has had many articles published and was an NGS contributing editor for eleven years. She co-authored The Internet for Genealogists: A Beginner’s Guide, made two instructional videos on using the Internet for genealogy, and now publishes instructional videos online at her website . Her last book, Genealogy 101: How to Trace Your Family’s History and Heritage, was sponsored by NGS for its 100th anniversary. Barbara has served on the APG Board of Directors and as secretary for that organization.

Treasurer: Jean F. Atkinson Andrews
South Carolina

Jean F. Atkinson Andrews graduated from Illinois State University with a B.S. (Accounting) and Butler University in Indianapolis with an M.B.A. (Finance). Prior to becoming active in NGS, she had a thirtyone year career in the manufacturing and automotive industries as a controller, financial analyst, and program manager. She has also been a partner in a small retail business, and served in officer positions with a number of nonprofit groups. Her personal family history research began in 2006 prior to leaving full-time employment, and is concentrated in Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, and Maryland, in addition to researching several lines in Germany. She is currently completing the NGS Home Study Course, and plans to pursue BCG certifi cation once her NGS coursework is complete. In addition to NGS, Jean is a member of many genealogical associations, including the Illinois State Genealogical Society, New England Historic Genealogical Society, the Ohio Genealogical Society, and the Fulton and Henry County (Ohio) Genealogical Societies. She lives in Aiken, South Carolina.

Director Area 1: To be filled
California

Director Area 2: David McDonald, cg
Wisconsin

David McDonald, cg, helped revise the NGS American Genealogy Home Study Course and is one of its proctors. Board-certified since 2004, he lectures regionally, nationally, and internationally on church records, migration patterns, and records of fraternal and community organizations. He teaches genealogy in the School of Continuing Studies at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Dave has contributed to the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, Nebraska Ancestree, the Illinois State Genealogical Society Newsletter and Hawkeye Heritage. Dave has attended various national conferences and institutes, including the National Institute on Genealogical Research in Washington [2005] and the Advanced Methodology track of the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama [2003]. He is a director of the International Society for British Genealogy and Family History and is a trustee for the Board for Certification of Genealogists. An active researcher since 1977, he joined NGS in 1997 and is a member of several local and regional genealogical societies and professional organizations. Beyond genealogical pursuits, Rev. McDonald is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ. He lives near Madison, Wisconsin, with his wife, Dr. Jennet Shepherd (an optometrist), and three teenaged children. The family is owned by two cats and a basset hound.

Director Area 3: Richard Camaur, jd, cg
Virginia

Richard is an attorney, genealogist, and lecturer. He is a former president of the Fairfax (Virginia) Genealogical Society and was a member of its Board of Directors from 1998–2005. He is currently secretary of the National Institute on Genealogical Research Alumni Association (NIGRAA). His two decades of genealogical activities include Italy, Catholic Church records, California, and pre-World War I Austria. Richard is a member of various genealogical societies and has lectured at national and local genealogical events. Richard was admitted to the District of Columbia bar in 1976 and the Virginia State Bar in 1977. He maintains a general civil practice of law in Fairfax, Virginia, and he served as education chair of the Fairfax (County) Bar Association. Richard received his Bachelor of Science in Foreign Service, Master of Arts, and Juris Doctor from Georgetown University. He has been a board-certified genealogist since 2000.

Director Area 4: To be Filled

Director at Large: Arlene V. Jennings, cg
New York

Arlene V. Jennings, cg, is a resident of New York and a native of Kansas. In her professional life, she taught French at the Universities of Washington and Michigan, and applied linguistics in Ecuador and Romania. Upon her retirement, Arlene founded Global Training Solutions, specializing in cross-cultural effectiveness, where she trained managers for the opening of luxury hotels. Arlene is a graduate of the National Institute on Genealogical Research, Samford’s Advanced Methodology course, and the NGS Home Study Course. She has served on the APG publications advisory committee, the BCG nominating committee, the New York Genealogical & Biographical Society’s education and publications committees, as webmaster for the Friends of the National Archives in Pittsfi eld, Massachusetts, and as secretary of NGS. She is the executive producer of the NGS video series, Paths to Your Past, and online video interviews and features at the NGS website. After years of tracking her ancestors’ migrations to the Midwest, Arlene’s research is now focused on their origins in England and Ireland.

Director at Large: Stefani Evans, cg
Nevada

Stefani Evans, cg, was certified by the Board for Certification of Genealogists® in 2005. Daughter of a U.S. Marine Corps fighter pilot, she lived on both coasts and in Japan before her sixth birthday, grew up in Orange County, Calif., and settled in Las Vegas, Nev., in 1980. She holds a B.A. in English and M.A. degrees in Educational Administration and U.S. History (May 2011). In April 2010 the faculty of the Department of History at the University of Nevada Las Vegas awarded her the Robert and Anita Hulse Award for Best Pre-Exams M.A. Student. Published in the National Genealogical Society Quarterly, the New York Genealogical and Biographical Society Record, and Crossroads, she lectures locally and regionally; she has also presented papers at conferences of the Urban History Association (2010), Phi Alpha Theta History Honor Society (2010), and Nevada Historical Society (2008). She serves as Trustee for the BCG Education Fund and is BCG advertising manager, OnBoard copy editor, and member of BCG Outreach and ACTION committees. She is conference chair for the NGS 2013 conference in Las Vegas.

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Director at Large: Everett Ireland, cg
California

Everett Ireland, cg, has been an active genealogist for more than nineteen years and serves in several genealogical organizations. He is a past member of the APG Board of Trustees, and  currently is president pro tem of the California State Genealogical Alliance. He is a life member of NGS. Ireland has been a lecturer at three national conferences and has lectured extensively at genealogical society meetings and seminars in Southern California and the Midwest. He has published articles and reviews in genealogical publications, both locally and nationally on a variety of topics, including new technology for genealogical research, use of DNA in genealogy, and reviews of new publications. After receiving a degree in engineering physics from the University of Michigan, he had a career as a government scientist in the fi eld of military command and control systems. He has been a board-certified genealogist since 1993 and specializes in Southern California and Midwest America genealogy.

Director at Large: David Ouimette, cg
Utah

David S. Ouimette, cg is manager of content strategy at FamilySearch in Salt Lake City. His responsibilities include identifying the most valuable records for genealogical research worldwide and prioritizing records to digitally preserve and make available online. He has conducted onsite family history research and participated in records negotiations in Belgium, Canada, England, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and much of the United States. He previously worked in software development and product management at Ancestry.com. David has lectured at NGS and Federation of Genealogical Societies national conferences and the Samford and Salt Lake Institutes of Genealogy. His research specialties include Ireland, Quebec, and New England. He has contributed articles to Ancestry Magazine, APG Quarterly, Crossroads, The Septs, and BYU Family Historian. David is the author of Finding Your Irish Ancestors: A Beginner’s Guide (Provo, Utah: Ancestry, 2005). He currently serves as vice president of the Utah Genealogical Association and is responsible for publishing Crossroads magazine.

Director: Jordan Jones
North Carolina

Jordan Jones received a BA in Honors in English with a minor in Philosophy (magna cum laude) from California State University, Northridge, and an MA in English from UC Davis. He has been a genealogist since 1973; has designed, edited, and published books and magazines since 1987; and has designed and published websites since 1995. He has published poetry, fiction, non-fiction, and works in translation in numerous magazines and is the author of two books of poetry, which including poems on genealogical subjects: Sand & Coal: Poems and The Wheel: Poems. He has worked in technical writing and software development and is currently a senior software development manager for content management services at Cisco Systems. He is the webmaster for the North Carolina Chapter APG and the Virginia and North Carolina and Genealogical Societies and is on the board of directors of the North Carolina Genealogical Society. He has spoken at several regional, statewide, and national conferences in the fields of technology and genealogy, and writes the “Technology” column for the NGS Magazine. He lives in Raleigh, North Carolina with his wife and stepson.

Past President: Janet A. Alpert,
Michigan

Janet A. (Jan) Alpert joined the NGS board as secretary in 2004, serving a two-year term. In 2006, she was elected president of NGS. Prior to becoming active in NGS, she had a thirty-five-year career in the title insurance industry, retiring in 2004. She served as president of the Genealogical Research Institute of Virginia (GRIVA) for five years in the 1980s. She has done personal family history research for more than twenty-five years, mostly in New England, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and the Midwest. In 1997, she published a family genealogy, Hatevil Nutter of Cover, New Hampshire, and His Descendants with Fred Boyle, cg. In addition to NGS, Jan is a member of many genealogy associations including New England Historic Genealogical Society, New York Genealogical and Biographical Society, the Historical Society of Pennsylvania, the New York History Association, as well as local genealogical organizations such a GRIVA, Tazewell County (Illinois) Genealogical Society, Hunterdon County Historical Society (New Jersey), New Hampshire Society of Genealogists, and Descendants of Ancient Windsor (Connecticut). A native of Illinois, Alpert received her BA degree from the University of California at Santa Barbara and earned an MBA degree from the University of Connecticut. She resides seasonally in Holland, Michigan, and Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

*Certified Genealogist, cg, Certified Genealogical Lecturer and cgl are service marks of the Board for Certification of Genealogists® used by the Board to identify its program of genealogical competency evaluation and used under license by the Board’s associates.