Armenian Genealogy Conference

Join us for a day of workshops, presentations, community and discovering your Armenian roots.

9AM-10AM

Welcoming and current state of Armenian genealogy

10AM – 11AM Breakout Session 1

Mark Arslan – Armenian Immigration Project: Basics

George Aghjayan – DNA Testing and Armenian genealogy

Tracy Keeney – Crucial Steps for Tracing Your Armenian Family Tree

Rev. Dr. George A. Leylegian – The System of Armenian Rural Monasteries in the Province of Diyarbakir

Tsoleen Sarian and Shogher Margossian – Project Save and Houshamadyan.org: Documenting Armenian life through photographs and memory items

11AM-Noon Breakout Session 2

Mark Arslan – Armenian Immigration Project: Basics

George Aghjayan – DNA Testing and Armenian genealogy

Tracy Keeney – Crucial Steps for Tracing Your Armenian Family Tree

Ani Boghikian Kasparian – Stitching the Fabric of Our Roots: From Chmshgadzak to the Diaspora

Shogher Margossian – the Armenian music of Dikranagerd

Noon-2PM

Lunch and Networking

1PM-4PM

Houshamadyan and Project Save will be available to collect photographs and other memory items – please plan on bringing items to the conference to help both these wonderful initiatives

2PM – 3PM Breakout Session 3

Mark Arslan – Armenian Immigration Project: Primary Sources

George Aghjayan – DNA Testing and Armenian genealogy

Tracy Keeney – Crucial Steps for Tracing Your Armenian Family Tree

Ani Boghikian Kasparian – Stitching the Fabric of Our Roots: From Chmshgadzak to the Diaspora

Rev. Dr. George A. Leylegian – Armenian Shrines and Pilgrimages in the Province of Diyarbakir

3PM – 4PM Breakout Session 4

Mark Arslan – Armenian Immigration Project: Demonstration of Reports & Queries

George Aghjayan – DNA Testing and Armenian genealogy

Tracy Keeney – Crucial Steps for Tracing Your Armenian Family Tree

Ani Boghikian Kasparian – Stitching the Fabric of Our Roots: From Chmshgadzak to the Diaspora

Rev. Dr. George A. Leylegian – The Armenian Church and the Rite of Marriage in the Ottoman Province of Diyarbakir

4PM – 5PM Breakout Session 5

Mark Arslan – Armenian Immigration Project: How you Can Contribute Content

George Aghjayan – DNA Testing and Armenian genealogy

Tracy Keeney – Crucial Steps for Tracing Your Armenian Family Tree

Rev. Dr. George A. Leylegian – The Armenian Churches in the City of Amid/Diyarbakir/Dikranagerd

Tsoleen Sarian and Shogher Margossian – Project Save and Houshamadyan.org: Documenting Armenian life through photographs and memory items

ABOUT THE SPEAKERS

George Aghjayan

George Aghjayan graduated with honors from Worcester Polytechnic Institute in 1988 with a Bachelor of science degree in Actuarial Mathematics. He achieved Fellowship in the Society of Actuaries in 1996. After a career in both insurance and structured finance, Aghjayan retired in 2014 to concentrate on Armenian related research and projects. His primary area of focus is the demographics and geography of western Armenia as well as a keen interest in the hidden Armenians living there today. Other topics he has written and lectured on include Armenian genealogy and genocide denial. He maintains the website http://westernarmenia.weebly. com/

Mark Arslan

Mark Arslan recently retired from 35 years at IBM Corporation in technical services and sales. He is married with three children and lives in North Carolina. Mark is one-fourth Armenian; his paternal grandfather Dikran Arslanian immigrated to America in 1906 from Keghi, Erzurum, Turkey and eventually moved to Fresno, California in the early 1930’s, where Mark’s parents grew up. Mark has been researching his Armenia genealogy since the early 1970’s. He founded the Armenian DNA Project (FamilyTreeDNA) in 2005. In 2011, he started the Armenian Immigration Project (an online database of abstracts of primary source material for the study of Armenian immigration to North America through 1930). Mark continues to develop the database and leads a team of volunteers who are adding content from localities in North America where Armenians settled.

Tracey Keeney

Tracy Keeney was born in Albany, New York with Armenian roots in Kharpert, Keghi and Dikranagert. She began researching her Armenian ancestry 4 1/2 years ago as an amateur, knowing nothing more than her great grandparent’s names. But her creative methods for researching her family and finding records that were not available on major genealogy sites brought her great success and hundreds of family names dating back to 1820. Her passion and desire to help others trace their Armenian families spawned the creation of the Armenian Genealogy Group on Facebook which is expected to breach 10,000 by the end of the year. Tracy is happily married, has four children and lives in Kansas City, Missouri.

Ani Boghikian-Kasparian

Ani Boghikian-Kasparian has been a member of the Detroit Armenian community since her family immigrated to the US in 1969. She graduated from the A.G.B.U Alex and Marie Manoogian School. Ani has a Bachelor of Arts degree in Psychology and Sociology, and Master of Arts degrees in Counseling and in Education. She taught high school social studies and English for ten years, teaching her students in depth about the Armenian Genocide and culture through established curriculum. Since 2004 she teaches Modern Western Armenian as an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan-Dearborn and assists in the Armenian Research Center with acquisitions and archival work, among other things. Her research focus is on collecting testimonies of Armenians who lived in Western Armenian post Genocide, documenting their life experiences, traditions, and life styles.

Rev. Dr. George A. Leylegian

George A. Leylegian was born in Providence and is third-generation with ancestry from Dikranagerd and Palou. He completed three bachelor’s in Economics, International Law, and Theology from Claremont McKenna in southern California; three master’s in Business Administration, Law (contracts), and Ministry from University of San Francisco (Jesuit); and completed his doctorate in Ministry from the same. He has authored more than 200 articles on Armenian liturgy, and continues to mentor seminarians and clergy as they pursue their studies. His area of interest includes the structure of Armenian parish churches and monasteries in the rural parts of the Ottoman Empire. He currently resides in The Bahamas.

Tsoleen Sarian

Tsoleen Sarian was recently named the Executive Director of Project SAVE, Armenian Photograph Archives. Her previous work in the non-profit sector has included Armenia Tree Project and the Global Partnership for Afghanistan, as well as a period with the Conflict Management Group. She serves in a leadership role at the Armenian Memorial Church, and on the Board of Directors of the Armenian National Committee of America (ANCA) Eastern Region. From 2002-13, she participated on the Massachusetts State House Armenian Genocide Commemoration Steering Committee, serving as its chair during her last three years. A graduate of Merrimack College with a major in French and history, Sarian has also participated in the Armenian Assembly of America’s summer internship program. She is currently studying for a masters degree in non-profit management from Northeastern University.

Shogher Margossian

Shogher Margossian has a BA and an MA in English Language and Literature and a Teaching Degree from the Lebanese National University. She has received her second MA in Music & Culture Studies from London. Over the years she has worked as a translator, teacher, editor and curator. She currently lives in Brussels and works as the associate art director, editor, and coordinator for Houshamadyan’s Open Digital Archive, she is also the coordinator and the responsible for Houshamadyan’s collaboration projects with Armenian schools and cultural centers around the world. Shogher is also an independent cultural consultant and works on various projects with the Gulbenkian Foundation.

Levon Saryan

Dr. Levon Saryan was born and raised in Wilmington, Delaware. He received his B. A. and Ph.D. in the sciences at The Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore. He served nearly 30 years as Scientific Director of the Industrial Toxicology program at Aurora Healthcare in Milwaukee, and in 2012 was appointed to a 3.5 year term as Commissioner at the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District.

In recognition of his contribution to the elimination of lead poisoning in Armenia, Levon was named an overseas member of the Republic of Armenia National Academy of Sciences in 2009. He is a member of the Society for Armenian Studies, the Armenian Numismatic and Antiquities Society, and several other Armenian organizations. He is an expert on Armenian coins and related artifacts and has written, lectured and exhibited widely on these topics. He has visited Armenia several times, often in connection with scientific and public health research projects. He and his wife Shirley have two children, Ani, a physician with Wheaton Franciscan Healthcare in Racine, and Armen, a producer and host with WOKY radio in Milwaukee.

SPONSORS

National Association for Armenian Studies and Research

Hamazkayin Armenian Educational and Cultural Society

Houshamadyan.org

Project SAVE Armenian Photo Archive

Ramapo College of New Jersey