As early as the 1997 book, Evidence! Citation & Analysis for the Family Historian, Elizabeth Shown Mills has covered the topics of citation and analysis.  It is this second item, analysis, that is the focus of this innovator award. In Evidence! we start to see the formation of the current classification for sources (as original or derivative) and evidence (as direct or indirect).  The BCG Genealogical Standards Manual published in 2000 supports the classification of sources (as original or derivative), adds a classification for information (as primary or secondary), and continues the classification of evidence (as direct or indirect).  These classifications remained unchanged in Professional Genealogy which was published in 2001.  By 2006 as seen on quick sheet, Evidence Analysis: A Research Process Map by Elizabeth Shown Mills we see the formation of a new evidence classification so in addition to direct or indirect we can classify evidence as negative evidence.  When Evidence Explained was published in 2007 it restated these same classifications for sources (original or derivative), information (primary or secondary), and evidence (direct, indirect, or negative).

The winner of the next innovator award not only supports Evidence Explained citation templates but has coded these professional analysis practices into their software in a way that is approachable to all.  So a big congratulations goes out to Bruce Buzbee and his RootsMagic team!

Let’s look at the implementation in more detail.

In RootsMagic 3, we had a way to specify the quality of a source but the feature in RootsMagic 4 is dramatically improved.

Here is the citation quality dropdown list from the Edit Citation Details screen in RootsMagic 3:

The list contains primary, secondary, questionable, and unreliable.

Compare that to the citation quality screen from RootsMagic 4:

As you can see, RootsMagic 4 supports separate classifications for source, information, and evidence and fully supports these classification following Evidence Explained.

You get to this screen by clicking the Quality button on the Edit Source screen:

The next closest competitor of this feature is Family Tree Maker 2009, but the software fails to acknowledge the existence of negative evidence:

I am not sure when each product officially released this feature. The best I can estimate is that Family Tree Maker 2009 was released the first of February 2009 and RootsMagic 4 the end of March 2009.  I was aware of this feature in RootsMagic 4 all the way back in July 2008.  Since RootsMagic 4 handles negative evidence, it gets the award.

I feel that this is a transformational innovation because as more genealogists and family historians at all skill levels use this common terminology, analysis will become more consistent and communication will become more clear.  Look for other genealogy software (desktop as well as online) to support citation quality following the genealogical standards in Evidence Explained in the near future.

There are some changes and additonal improvements that I would to see in the area of citation quality that I would like to address in future posts. This is truly an exciting time.  Genealogy software is moving more towards helping with reserach analysis and not just the recording of research results.  Thanks RootsMagic for being a leader in this area.

To see other ThinkGenealogy Innovator award winners, visit the winners page.

The ProGen Study group assignment for December 2008 was to simply read two chapters and then later talk about them with your group.  There was no practical assignment this month.

The chapters that we studied in Professional Genealogy were:

• Chapter 19 - Genealogy Columns by Regina Hines Ellison, CGRS
• Chapter 21 – Book and Media Reviews by Elizabeth Shown Mills, CG, CGL, FASG

Genealogy Columns

This chapter talks about how to get your first job as a genealogy writer for a magazine or newspaper and gives tips about writing a column.  I am fortunate to have had the chance to write for both Digital Genealogist and NGS Magazine.  I found the tips in this chapter helpful.  It some ways the content is a little dated as it only briefly mentions online journals and news magazines.  Since the publication of this book, we have seen an explosion of blogs, micro-blogging (ex: Twitter), and social networking sites (ex: Facebook) The world of blogging has opened avenues where genealogy writers can easily self publish online.  When the revision of Professional Genealogy is done, I suspect this chapter will need a major rewrite.

Book and Media Reviews

This chapter warns would-be reviewers to avoid the easy road of being either a Charitable Reviewer or an Overworked Reviewer and to instead take the path of the Conscientious Reviewer.  The first type of reviewer “produces a noncommittal review – a mere book report.”  The second type of reviewer is too overworked to do a proper review so publishes a blurb pulled from the publicity flyer or book cover.  These are sometimes referred to as “sweetheart reviews.”

The Conscientious Reviewer produces a good, honest review.  This is time-consuming to write but actually provides a service to those reading the review.

“Reviewers exist to serve readers. Ideally they do it with sensitivity, scholarship, and style – though not necessarily in that order.”

Blogs often spread the news around the Internet by creating posts and linking to web sites or other blog posts.  Twitter does a similar thing via a Retweet.  There are some that choose to simply pass along what they discover while others take the time to analyze and comment.  It is interesting to think about blogging and tweeting and see how it relates to the role of being a Conscientious Reviewer.

Any thoughts?

The ProGen Study Group assignment for November 2008  was about research.

Our reading assignment from Professional Genealogy was:

• Chapter 15 - Research Procedures by Linda Woodward Geiger, CGRS, CGL

As professional genealogists we often specialize in a location, type of record, topic, or ethnic group.  We need to be knowledgeable and prepared before research begins and effective while researching.

This paragraph does a great job summarizing the chapter contents:

“Regardless of our specialty, effective research on any specific project comes from long-range preparation, followed by a literature survey and an actual on-site search.  This chapter provides strategies for identifying available resources, determining their locations, using electronic finding aids, and otherwise preparing ourselves before we arrive on site.  Finally, it offers suggestions for the research itself – both good work habits and goodwill builders.”

This chapter is also a helpful reminder to personal genealogists that preparation before research is important.

The assignment for this month was to create a locality guide for our area of specialization.  Since I am currently researching Worth Tucker, I chose Ashe County, North Carolina as my location.

Instead of writing in a notebook or keeping a Word document on my computer, I decided to post my assignment on the FamilySearch Research Wiki.  That way others can review it and enhance it and that I can access it from any computer with an Internet connection.

One of the things I like about the Research Wiki is the structure it gives to each county:

Here is a link to the page about Ashe County, North Carolina.  Some of the information was already there, but I added U.S. Federal Census townships as well as the statistics for Laurel township in 1870.

Oh how the months go by.  Back in October 2008, we completed ProGen Study group assignment #7 and I am just getting around to blogging about it.

The original plan was to cover Chapters 14 and 15 of ProGen, but that proved to be too big of an assignment, so we tackled only one chapter.

You can find this in Professional Genealogy in:

• Chapter 14 - Problem Analysis and Research Plans by Helen F. M. Leary, CG, CGL, FASG

The chapter discusses two different types of analysis: preliminary and detailed.

Preliminary Analysis

The purpose of the preliminary analysis phase is to determine if the professional researcher should accept an assignment or not.  During this phase we should:

1. See if the work requested matches our business plan
2. Determine if the project fits in with our time and fee schedules
3. Consider the consequences of accepting or declining the project and what additional details might be needed to make a final decision

Detailed Analysis

Once the project is accepted and before any research begins,  we need to analyze the available information and create a research plan.  This is the purpose of the detailed analysis phase.

During this phase it is helpful to make a series of lists including 1) Questions to ask the client, 2) Things to Find Out and 3) Records to check.  Time is spent identifing the principal person that is the subject of the project and as much information about that person as possible including:

• Alternative name spellings
• Known birth, marriage, and death facts
• Parents
• Children
• Places of residence
• Major life event for project

The chapter also briefly discusses mathematical analysis, time-line analysis, psychological analysis, and client-skill analysis.  In addition it mentions different types of “studies”: handwriting, land-records, and whole-family (or neighborhood).

Research Plans

The last part of the chapter discusses the development of a research plan.

I found this chapter very helpful especially as a prepared for a presentation in November 2008 that included a case study of my great-grandfather, Worth Tucker.

The assignment was to pick a research problem, do a preliminary analysis and develop a research plan.

My completed homework assignment can be found here (Word document, 100 KB).

This month the ProGen study groups studied a single topic: Time Management

You can find this in Professional Genealogy in:

• Chapter 13 – Time Management by Patricia Law Hatcher, CG, FASG

A key paragraph at the beginning of the chapter states:

“Dozens of times each day we make decisions – consciously or unconsciously – to begin, continue, or terminate various activities. Many of the time management problems genealogists face do not have solutions, but if we recognize the problems, we can make more informed decisions.”

The rest of the chapter identifies and discusses 10 problems that genealogists face:

1. Creating boundaries
2. Identifying clients
3. Organizing time
4. Planning for unbillable time
5. Cutting time waste
6. Identifying procrastination
7. Making time for growth
8. Saying “no”
9. Giving away time
10. Controlling the inquiring mind

As an additional resource, we were encouraged to watch a time management lecture given by Professor Randy Pausch and review the accompanying PowerPoint slides (11 MB).  This lecture was given in 2007 after Randy knew he was dying of cancer. 

Also provided was a link to an article titled, “The Pickle Jar Theory.”   This reminded me a lot of the “big rocks” story from Stephen R. Covey’s 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

Practical Assignment

Our assignment this month was pretty straight forward 1) keep a time journal for a week, 2) identify time “thieves”, and 3) begin eliminating wasted time.

Thanks to a dedicated group member, I quickly received a time journal Word template via e-mail and started tracking my time.  Each weekday is pretty much the same:

• Wake up/get ready/breakfast
• Help get our children off to school
• Work
• Dinner/family time
• Personal time
• Bed time

Throw into that some early morning work meetings, Family Home Evening, Cub Scouts, Boy Scouts, and Date night and that is pretty much it.  But by tracking the time, I was able to identify and put a number to some of my major time bandits.

So here are my top 3 time bandits:

 A member of my group, Randy Seaver, kept a time log for two weeks and blogged about it on Genea-Musings.

Discussion Group

It was interesting to talk about the time thieves of others. Many from our group included e-mails, Facebook, blogs, and other internet trappings.

For the past few months at work, I have helped facilitate teaching the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People one-day course.  Habit 3 is “Put First Things First” which talks about the Time Management Matrix.  This how I summarized this concept during our chat:

Has anyone read “7 Habits” where Covey talks about the four quadrants of activities?

imagine a square subdivided into 4 squares

across the top is Urgent, Not Urgent

down the left is Important, Not Important

Q1 – urgent, important

this is crises, pressing problems, deadlines

A lot of us work in Q1, sometimes because of procrastination

Q3 – urgent, not important

just let those things go: interruptions, some e-mails, other people’s tasks put on you

Q4 – not important, not urgent

time wasters, too much tv, internet , etc

Q2 – important, not urgent

this is often neglected due to Q3, Q4

to get more time above the line (Q1, Q2) we eliminate Q3,Q4 activities

Q2 is also the area for recharging: physical, mental, social, spiritual

Overall it was another great discussion and I feel that the members of our group are wonderful.

For October we will be beginning the section on professional research skills.  I am really looking forward to learning more.

If you want to follow my experience in reverse order, follow the link to ProGen Study Group #5.

It is hard to believe that we have finished our fifth and now sixth month of the study group.  I am a little behind in reporting month five. Here is a link back to ProGen Study Group #4.

Our reading assignment from Professional Genealogy was:

• Chapter 6 – Executing Contracts by Patricia Gilliam Hastings J.D.
• Chapter 10 – Setting Realistic Fees by Sandra Hargreaves Luebking

In chapter 6, the author discusses the need for a contract and breaks it down into its essential elements.  The chapter gives two sample formal contracts for genealogical lecturing and research services.  As a less formal alternative, there is a sample agreement for genealogical research services in letter form.

In chapter 10 we read about the process of setting realistic fees:

1. Identify annual salary needs
2. Calculate annual expenses
3. Set a profit margin over and above salary
4. Determine billable hours
5. Calculate hourly fee
6. Evaluate and adjust

Practical Assignment

This month the assignment came in two parts:

Part 1 (Chapter 6)

The assignment was to write a draft of a client contract.  I found the contract for the genealogical lecturing services more interesting.  I did my first presentation earlier this year at BYU’s Family History Technology Workshop and will be presenting at a local conference in November put on by My Ancestors Found.  In both those cases, the conference already defined the terms of the contract.  I came across a page on the FGS site that outlines their policy for conference speakers.

So it appears that most (if not all) conferences already have a predefined contract for speakers.  I suppose you might need to write your own contract if you were seeking speaking engagements at local and state genealogical societies.  I don’t see this in the near future, but when that time comes I will probably combine the example from Elizabeth Shown Mills on page 115-117 of Professional Genealogy with the policy from FGS.

Part 2 (Chapter 10)

This assignment was to use this formula to set or evaluate the fees we charge our clients: 

Hourly Fee = (Salary + Expenses + Profit) / Billable Hours

 Since research isn’t my emphasis, this formula doesn’t apply.  In commercial software we do need to figure out how much to charge for the piece of software and determine how many software licenses one is likely to sell.  In an attempt to better understand the industry, I contacted the owners of two of the top genealogy software applications and asked a few questions.  Representatives from both companies shared some details about how they got involved with genealogy software, but neither shared any formulas for setting the price for their software.

Discussion Group

We continued to gel as a group and find that the discussion time passes quickly and with much laughter.

Scout camp is over and the children are back in school.  July was a busy month.  It is already mid-August and I haven’t yet posted the July happenings for the ProGen Study Group.  For any newcomers, here is a link back to last month’s post: ProGen Study Group #3.

We only had one chapter to read for the month:

•  Chapter 9 – Structuring a Business by Melinda Shackleford Kashuba, Ph.D.

This is definately one of the chapters in the book geared toward professional as in business as oppossed to other chapters that focus on expertise and skill:

“Many genealogists run their businesses with minimal planning or documentation, and they wonder why opportunities seem to elude them.”

As you might expect, this chapter includes many questions to be used as a self assessment:

• Why you want to start a business?
• Do you have the skills?
• Are we entrepreneurs at heart?

The following topics are included:

• Mission statement
• Business plan
• Legal structures – sole proprietorship, partnership, corporation (C, S, LLC)
• Local, state, and federal regulations (licenses, zoning, taxes, permits)
• Resources – time, people, and money

Overall the chapter does a good job of introducing the basics of business and how it relates to the professional genealogist.

Practical Assignment

In addition to reading the chapter, the practical assignment had us use the resources available at the U.S. Small Business Administration:

1. Small Business Planner
2. Check-list for Going into Business
3. Business Plan Workshop

The final part of the of the assignment was to write a rough outline of our own business plan.

To be honest, I am so far away from starting my own business right now that I didn’t take the time to start a business plan.  I am not interested in being a professional researcher.  I am interested in designing and developing innovative genealogy software so a business plan may one day be in my future.

Peer Group Assignment/Discussion Group

My peer group changed this month so now it is the same as my discussion group.  The peer group assignment was to talk with members of your peer group: in person, on the phone, or online via Skype or otherwise.  The topic of conversation was open ended.  A scribe was to take notes and share with the peer leader. The discussion group assignment was left to the discretion of the discussion group leaders.  Well, since both these group are combined for us now, we decided to hold a conference call instead of the regularly scheduled IM chat.

Strike 3 – SkypeOut

I decided that I would take this opportunity to research and possibly try out Skype which allows for free calls over the internet.  In a short time I was able to discover that free only applied to Skype-to-Skype calls. There would be a charge for making a Skype call to a regular telephone (referred to as SkypeOut).  Now the cost was reasonable.  For an hour SkypeOut call to New York (the location of the conference call-in number), the cost would be: 3.9 cents for a connection fee plus 2.1 cents/minute times 60 minutes equals $1.30.

Now there was a number of reasons that I wanted to go with Skype in this situation:

1. Good opportunity to explore the technology and capabilities
2. Already had a headset (headphone/microphone combo)
3. Didn’t want to use my cell phone minutes
4. Didn’t want to crane my neck to one side during an hour conversation
5. Didn’t want to risk having my cell phone drop the call

The download and setup of Skype was really easy.  I even got a free phone call to test it out.  My next decision was how to pay for the call.  I decided to go with the prepay option and bought a $10 credit. 

I did all this the night before so that there would be no technical difficulties the night of the call.  Well, the time for the conference call arrived.  I put on my headset.  I dialed the number and was prompted for the conference code.  Ok.  So how do I enter the conference code?  I checked on the Skype website and didn’t find the answer.  I did a Google search and found that it was a capability missing in Skype.  The voice on the conference bridge even adviced that if I were calling in using a voice-over-IP service like Skype to call back on a regular phone.  I admit that I heard that message first but was in disbelief that Skype couldn’t connect to a conference bridge.  I tried a few times before I gave up and called in using my older cell phone.  So now I still have $9.83 worth of credit and a little better understanding of the technology and its current limitations.

Talking to Everyone – One a Little Later than the Rest

The best part (by far) of this month’s assignment was talking to newly-found friends and hearing their voices.  We talked about the assigment, about starting a business, about writing articles, and anything else that came to mind.  There was a change in the call-in number and unfortunately one member of our group called the other number.  So while we were talking, he was listening to hold music and feeling quite solitary. The 1 hour call was over too quickly.  I hope that we hold another conference call soon.

Well, this month is half over and I haven’t yet started my reading.  Two more chapters along the same lines as last month: client contracts and setting fees.

At least I have the group discussion to look forward to.

• Chapter 4 – The Essential Library by Joy Reisinger, CG
• Chapter 7 – Copyright and Fair Use by Val D. Greenwood, J.D., AG

Chapter 4 begins with the phrase: “A personal library is an essential tool of every professional. As genealogists, we use the written word on a daily basis for information about unfamiliar locales and repositories, as well as for source material.”

The chapter then proceeds to break down the selection criteria for our library into three goal areas: education, efficiency, and reliability. As we then proceed to stock our library, we can do it in stages starting with a basic shelf, adding more essential materials, and finally topping it off with useful, but discretionary items. We should also have a balance of three categories of media: instructional works, general references, and source materials. Like the public and academic libraries of today, our libraries will be a mix of books, magazines, journals, maps, and digital media. This chapter helps us plan our personal library so we can then purchase our items as time and budget allows.

The majority of the chapter is a 15-page bibliography of library items to consider. It covers topics in various areas including instruction manuals, journals, source guides, and international materials.

Chapter 7 is a must read for any genealogist or family historian. Unlike chapter 5 that talks about what is ethical, this chapter talks about what is legal. Both should be considered together. This chapter presents the basics of copyright and fair use and discusses them in the context of genealogy. I definitely learned some things I didn’t know on the topic my first read through.  But I will need to read it again at least a few more times for it to really sink in.
 

Practical Assignment
Our practical assignment this month was to:

1. Catalog all of our genealogy-related publications in our personal library
2. Using Chapter 4, identify missing items in our library and create a purchasing plan
3. Create a wish list of other items to add to the purchasing plan

Here is my assignment:

Items in My Library Today

• Most are cataloged on LibraryThing
• Magazines
  • NGS Quarterly (Dec 2005 – present)
  • NGS NewsMagazine (Jan 2006 – present)
  • Digital Genealogist (Sep 2007 – present)
  • Internet Genealogy (Nov 2006 – present)
  • Ancestry Magazine (Jan 2006 – present)
• Family History Library Catalog
• Heritage Quest Online (via local library)
• Footnote (free 1 year – user experience feedback session)
• BCG Directory
• APG Directory
• Black’s Law Dictionary, 2nd edition 

Items I Plan to Purchase

• My Amazon Wish List (in priority order)
• Genealogy as Pasttime and Profession by Daniel Lines Jacobus (maybe check out from the library)
• North Carolina Research: Genealogy & Local History, second edition, by Helen F. M. Leary
• North Carolina Maps

Peer Group Assignment
Our assignment for this month is to share our catalog of our personal library as well as our purchasing plan with our peers.  This gives our peers a chance to learn from our library as well as share some knowledge about items in our purchase plan.  For example, suppose that I feel PERSI is important to my library so it is part of my purchasing plan.  A peer might know that besides being part of a paid subscription at Ancestry, PERSI can be accessed for free (and often in our own homes) as part of Heritage Quest.  My wise peer might also then point me to an Encyclopedia of Genealogy entry for Heritage Quest Online that identifies libraries by state that offer free in-home access.

Discussion Group
The discussion topic for this month will be at least 5 questions dealing with copyright and fair use.

I usually write the ProGen post after we have had our online discussion, but this month I am doing it before for two reasons.  The first is that next week is Independence Day and I am not sure how many people will be available for our chat.  The second is that I thought I would just include my practical assignment as part of this post and send a link to my peers to review.

Depending on how (or if) the chat occurs this month, I might create a follow-up post with anything interesting I learned.

Here is a link to my ProGen Study Group #2  post for those interested.
 

This month we continued our study of Professional Genealogy by reading the following:

•  Chapter 2 – Educational Preparation by Claire Mire Bettag, CGRS
•  Chapter 8 – Alternative Careers by Elizabeth Kelly Kerstens, CGRS

Chapter 2 provided details on academic degrees or credit programs in genealogy. For example, BYU offers a BA in Family History – Genealogy as well as a Family History Certificate. Another certificate program is the Home Study Course provided by the National Genealogical Society. This chapter also talks about major conferences such as NGS, FGS, and those held at BYU. There are also numerous self-study options discussed. If I were to list all the educational opportunities, it would take pages. One newer series of conferences that is not mentioned in the chapter are those provided by My Ancestors Found. The chapter included mostly US programs but did mention some international ones.

Particularly helpful are pages 19-21 that provides questions in the areas of presenters, programs, sponsors, and other concerns that can be used to evaluate educational opportunities to determine which are right for you.

The chapter on alternative careers is interesting as it gives a brief description of more than 10 career opportunities in genealogy other than researcher, lecturer, teacher, and traditional genealogical author. For each career minimum requirements are discussed as well as how to begin. Missing from this list are newer pursuits such as blogger and podcaster which could be used in conjunction with any of these choices.

Currently I am a blogger, article author, and occasional lecturer. I continue to evaluate ideas on how to bring my skills as a non-genealogy software architect into a full-time career in the field of genealogy.

Practical Assignment

The practical assignment this month was to write an education plan and share it with my peer group. Here is my plan as it currently stands:

2008

• BYU Family History Technical Workshop (attend & present) – completed
• BYU Computerized Family History Conference – completed
• ProGen Study Group
• TG Study Group
• New FamilySearch Online training
• BYU free Online courses
• My Ancestors Found Conference – Mesa, AZ (attend & present)
• NGS Home Study (start)

2009
• My Ancestors Found Conference – Mesa, AZ
• BYU Family History Conference
• ProGen Study Group
• TG Study Group
• NGS Home Study (finish)

2010
• My Ancestors Found Conference – Mesa, AZ
• IGHR – Advanced
• BCG Certification (start)

This differs from what I submitted to my peer group as I learned some new things as the result of the Discussion Group Assignment.
 
Peer Group Assignment

The assignment for the peer group was to simply share our research plan with each other. This was helpful as motivation to think about and complete the assignment. It also was helpful to see what your peers are planning and to see how they formatted their plan. In a future revision of this education plan, I want to include more specific dates as milestones to track progress.

Discussion Group

Each discussion group was asked to pick an educational opportunity, research it, and provide a summary so that everyone in the ProGen Study Group can learn about the program. Our group selected the Home Study Course by NGS and followed the outline in pages 19-21 to evaluate the course. There were many questions that we didn’t know the answers to mostly in the area of course authors. After a few e-mails, we were able to get a detailed history of the course and its authors from Connie Lenzen, CG, who is a NGS Director as well as the chair of the NGS Education Committee. Thank you Connie for the quick response and the helpful information!

The discussion group had our online chat last week which was enjoyable. We discussed aspects of both chapters from our reading assignment as well as the Home Study Course. One of our members will be attending the Institute of Genealogy and Historical Research at Samford University this coming week and promises to share her experiences in next month’s discussion.Final note: I expect that the ProGen Study Group coordinator would appreciate it if I mention that the study group is closed to new members. This is not meant to be exclusionary, but each member of the group has committed to participating for the next year and a half (how long we expect it will take to complete the book). It would just be too chaotic if the membership of the group was constantly changing. Thanks for those who have expressed an interest. I hope that you will be able to at least follow along with my experience and do the assignments on your own.

• Chapter 1 – Defining Professionalism by Donn Devine, J.D., CG, CGI
• Chapter 5 – Ethical Standards by Neil D. Thompson, LL.B.,  Ph.D., CG, FASG

Related to this, I am part of a peer group where we complete an additional assignment and as peers we review each others’ work.  This month we wrote a mission statement. 
Some of the things I learned from the discussion:

1. Blogging is a way of performing service in the public interest and is one way in which the public can judge your professionalism.
2. It is important to start our research with a Research Plan and the Research Guides on FamilySearch.org can be a useful place to start.
3. As I strive to be more professional in my personal research, I have learned that genealogy is more of a marathon than a sprint.  Compare to say 5 years ago, today I am more cautions, try not to jump to conclusions, and try to do a better job of citing sources and analyzing evidence.
4. It is one thing to know the Genealogical Proof Standard (and other standards) and it is another to strive regularly to follow them.  At the point where we go from knowing to regularly practicing, is where professionalism starts.  The challenge is how to get beginners to work as professionally as possible as soon as possible.

I have very much enjoyed this first month as a member of a ProGen study group and have met some wonderful people.  I just finished my reading assignment for May and am working on my peer review assignment.  This month we are doing a group project which will be time well spent.  Mostly, I am looking forward to talking again with my study group friends during the online chat.