The Board for Certification of Genealogists (BCG) is pleased to announce the winners for each of the three scholarships sponsored by the Board. Scholarships will allow winners to attend one of four to five premier national genealogical institutes in 2024. Each scholarship will cover up to $1,700 of institute tuition, travel, and lodging expenses. BCG will also waive its final application fee of $300 for scholarship recipients who submit portfolios of work to be considered for certification within three years of the announcement of an award.
The Board for Certification of Genealogists established the Paul E. Sluby Sr. African American Scholarships in 2020.
Paul Edward Sluby Sr. (1934–2019)
(Photograph used with the permission of Patricia Carter Sluby, PhD)
The winners for 2023 are:
Clevlyn Bankhead Anderson (Norcross, Georgia)
Ms. Anderson has a bachelor’s degree in Sociology, and two masters’ degrees, one in Public Affairs and another in Technical and Professional Writing. Her work has been published in the AAHGS News and Noxubee County Historical Society Quarterly Bulletin. She is the Corresponding Secretary for AAHGS and a 2022 recipient of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History (MDAH) Fellowship.
Adrienne Fikes (Alexandria, Virginia)
Ms. Fikes is supporting African American communities by setting up a family history and genealogy presence in the Chapel Hill area and leading outreach efforts to capture community histories. She also advocates for the funding to protect and digitize the Friends of Central State Hospital in Petersburg, Virginia. A presenter and writer, her work has been published in History News Magazine. Her #16Greats Project, where participants work toward naming all sixteen of their great-great-grandparents, was a TEDx talk.
Olivia Dorsey Peacock (Charlotte, North Carolina)
Ms. Peacock launched the YouTube series, “GenTech,” which offers tutorials on technology tools to help family historians. She helped index records from the Black-owned McGowan Funeral Home, which operated in Dallas, Texas from 1955 to the 1990s and has developed several projects, specifically, Digital Black History, a searchable database of hundreds of digital Black history projects. She sees the power in teaching genealogical methodologies, preservation techniques, and technical skills to those interested in their family’s narrative.
The newly established Scholarship for Genealogists Under 40 has been awarded to:
Evan Wilson (Oakland, California)
Evan submitted a case study identifying the mother of an Alabama-born man in the 1700s. Evan has a Ph.D. in English literature and medieval studies. He has greatly enjoyed the education provided by both virtual and in-person institutes. He is an editorial assistant for The California Nugget and volunteers in various roles to give back to the genealogy community.
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Another new offering this year is the Scholarship to BCG Preliminary Applicants. The recipient is:
Jamie Poorman (Marshall, Illinois)
Jamie submitted a case study identifying the father of an Ohio-born woman. Jamie holds an MLS degree and is the head librarian in a rural public library planning to incorporate the collection of materials from a local genealogical library that is closing. This would position her library as a center for genealogical research and excellence in the community. Jamie has not yet had the opportunity to participate in an institute course. The benefit of an education at one of the institutes would be for herself and the community where she teaches throughout the state and specifically at her library.
“BCG is pleased to provide an opportunity to further the educational advancement of these individuals in the field of genealogy with the goal of putting them on the path towards certification,” said President Faye Jenkins Stallings, CG®. “Thank you to all applicants who expressed interest in furthering their genealogical education. BCG would welcome a submission from you next year for 2024 scholarships.”
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.
