Tuesday, December 13, 2005

CFP: FGS (Federation of Genealogical Societies) 2007

CFP: FGS (Federation of Genealogical Societies) 2007

Grand Wayne Center, Fort Wayne, Indiana
August 15-18, 2007

The Federation of Genealogical Societies and the Allen County Public Library are pleased to invite lecture proposals for the FGS/ACPL conference, "Meeting at the Crossroads of America: A Conference for the Nation's Genealogists," to be held August 15-18, 2007 at the newly expanded Grand Wayne Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana.


A wide variety of presentations are anticipated for the conference including sessions on research methodology and skill building, record sources, writing, publishing, use of computers and related technology, and professional topics. The program committee is particularly interested in proposals exploring migration into, within, and out of the upper Midwest region via its rivers, canals, railroads, trails, and roads. Presentations on researching the many native and immigrant groups that settled in the region are also encouraged, as are those focusing on the resources of important area libraries and archives. Submissions on original topics are especially desired, including those that are not strictly genealogical, but are of significant interest to researchers attempting to place their ancestors in historical context. Genealogical society management is also an important conference component and lectures on this topic are wanted as well. While most sessions are expected to follow the usual one hour lecture format, including time for questions, the program committee will consider proposals for panels, workshops and other innovative presentations. Sponsored lecture proposals are also welcome. Potential speakers may submit any number of proposals.

Speakers receive an honorarium, travel compensation, and conference registration, as well as a per diem and hotel nights based on the number of lectures given. Details on the compensation package are available at www.fgs.org/fgs-speakerpolicy.htm Invitations and contracts will be mailed by March 1, 2006.

Camera-ready handouts are required for each lecture or workshop presentation and will be included in the syllabus distributed to all conference registrants. The deadline for submission of syllabus materials will be April 30, 2007. Guidelines for the formatting of syllabus content will be included with the invitations to speak.

Please include the following information in your proposals:

-Your name, address, telephone and fax numbers, and e-mail address
-Title of presentation
-Brief description of your presentation (up to 40 words for the registration booklet)
-Designation of audience level (beginning, intermediate, or advanced)
-Outline or summary of presentation
-Audio visual requirements
-Summary of recent speaking experience. Those who have not spoken at a national conference before should include an audiotape of a recent lecture.
-Brief biography (no more than 50 words for the registration booklet)
-Proposals will be evaluated principally on the following criteria:
--Speaker's experience, skill and ability to produce a high quality oral presentation
--Relevance of the topic to the conference themes
--Originality of the topic
--Anticipated interest level in the topic

Proposals must be received by January 5, 2006, and may be submitted through regular mail, e-mail, or the Federation website at www.fgs.org. E-mail submissions must be in Word, WordPerfect or PDF format. Please do not duplicate electronic and print submissions. For additional information you may e-mail, write or telephone conference program chair Steve Myers.

Thank you in advance for the time and consideration you will invest in your proposals.

Steven W. Myers
FGS/ACPL 2007 Program Chair
P.O. Box 2270
Fort Wayne, IN 46801-2270
(260) 421-1225
Fax (260) 421-1386
smyers@acpl.info