RootsTech 2018 is just around the corner. This four-day genealogy conference will take place February 28–March 3, 2018 at the Salt Palace Convention Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. If you are able to attend, you’ll find many informative sessions specific to your calling as well as new ideas for how you might bless the lives of those you serve.
Attending Live
Temple and family history consultants, and the priesthood leaders that work with them, can attend RootsTech at a discounted price by using the promotional code 18CALLING upon registering at www.rootstech.org. With this code, you can purchase a full conference pass for $129, which includes:
- All four days of the conference—February 28 through March 3
- All four daily keynote sessions
- Access to the RootsTech Expo Hall
- Daily consultant-specific class sessions
You can also sign up for personalized discovery experiences with FamilySearch employees to learn more about how to teach effectively one on one, how the Spirit can influence your experiences, and how you can help others connect with their family history.
A wide variety of classes with your calling in mind are being offered at RootsTech 2018. Follow the links below to find full descriptions, times, and locations for each class.
Wednesday, February 28
- Start with the Heart
- Ministering to Others Brings Joy
- Discover, Gather, and Strengthen Your Family Together
Thursday, March 1
- Living Memory Discovery Experiences
- Discovery Experiences in the Tree
Friday, March 2
- Helping Consultants Succeed
Saturday, March 3
- FamilySearch and Ancestry: Discover More
- Using Family History to Do Missionary Work
- Records of Your Hispanic Ancestors on FamilySearch
- Start with the Heart
- Discover, Gather, and Strengthen Your Family Together
- 10 Easy FamilySearch.org Tasks
- Ministering to Others Brings Joy
- FamilySearch Mobile Apps: Family History Anytime, Anywhere
- Living Memory Discovery Experiences
- FamilySearch Tools for Advanced Users
- Finding Elusive Records at FamilySearch
Can’t attend?
If you are unable to make it to Salt Lake City to attend the conference in person, you can still participate. Each day of the conference, RootsTech will live-stream a select number of sessions online at rootstech.org. These sessions can be viewed at no cost, and will cover topics such as how to find and use pension files, how to uncover hidden truths in old family photos, and how to use the many features available on FamilySearch.
A full streaming schedule of events will be available in February 2018.
Watch Family Discovery Day on LDS.org
As part of RootsTech, the Family History Department also hosts Family Discovery Day, a one-day event to inspire you to discover, celebrate, and cherish your family relationships. Elder Dallin H. Oaks of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles and his wife Sister Kristen M. Oaks will be the keynote speakers at the 2018 Family Discovery Day. Other popular LDS speakers and entertainers, such as Hank Smith, Jason Hewlett, Evie Clair, Alex Melecio, and Kenya Clark will also speak. Family Discovery Day begins on March 3, 2018, at 1:00 p.m. and will be streamed live on the LDS.org homepage.
I registered October 16, 2017,shortly after I was called in September and set apart as a Family History and Temple Consultant. I am thrilled that there are classes especially for people like me who are just beginning to serve in this calling. I paid $169 to register, not knowing that I should have registered using my calling’s discounted price of $129.00 I am asking for a refund of $40.00. To whom do I address my request, please?
Marilyn, to talk to someone about getting a refund, contact info@rootstech.org
It would be such a blessing to be able to attend… I am disabled can no longer drive. Disability barely keeps my bills paid. My ward has no Internet since Oct. I only had my calling 3 weeks. The few people who had been involved left frustrated. I was supposed to get the youth more involved excited. I can’t we are dead in the water. Every time I ask anyone the shrug their shoulders pat me on the head (figuratively) to spend money I dont have even to do something I love so dearly have no way of getting there oh my electric wheelchair is close to dead it has taken 6 months and the company hasn’t been out here so I can order a new one. While I pray my husband stays away and doesn’t attempt to kill me again. Trying to move no openings. No one will help me with a legal separation agreement. So I have been doing family history and will start indexing on sleepless nights when I am tired of sorting thru the disaster I live in. I finally have found the carpet in the living room. Overwhelmed just a bit. Oh how I would love to go so much. This year it looks like there is not a chance. Between seeing this. Knowing the Internet is gone at the Church for the foreseeable future. As long as the people who are in charge of tech. Can plug in ethernet, they are pleased. *sigh such a waste.
Your High Priest Group Leader is over Temple and Family History work in your ward, under the direction of the Bishop. There are some amazing training resources for consultants as well as priesthood leaders at lds.org. As a stake consultant in my stake, we are visiting every ward with our first meeting for consultants, showing them the lds.org power point and a consultant planner lesson we have prepared for one of them. We return to meet with the ward council and show them the ward leadership power point and a consultant planner for one of them so all will see that the work we are doing will be done by ward consultants for ward members. Our stake high councilor who is over Temple and Family History work, directs the stake consultants who visit with the wards. We are returning to each ward to help them prepare consultant planner lessons for members, begin logs for who they are helping and what has already been done for them, etc. We also continue training them by using information provided to us in the stake reports we are sent on our progress in indexing and submissions etc., and other leadership things our area Temple and Family History Consultants provide us.
We (in Casper, WY and Ft. Collins, CO Temple district) are working under a model that has been VERY successful in other areas. Our area leaders are AMAZING. They visit our stake a couple of times a year and are in touch by email and phone often. The church has a completely amazing “order” in doing things and it applies to this work too.
There are amazing videos and resources at lds.org including rootstech sessions. I watch them often. Please continually pray for your area to implement the programs set up in the handbook and in talks and articles online, as they DO work. Please don’t give up. I would love to email with you if you like, or even chat on the phone.
I don’t know what to say about the internet problem, but please don’t underestimate the power of prayer! Prayer for your leaders, prayers to be able to move forward in this great work as our prophets and apostles have taught us, prayers for the members of your ward you need to be serving. Maybe I could help you find one thing that might help move it forward.
In closing, I would really suggest listening to the “Blessing of Temple and Family History Work” video found at lds.com. Oh my, the blessings promised by our apostles are just amazing. Listen, jot them down, and pray to the Lord that you can feel those necessary blessings in your life! Sending Love!
Cindy Bower
Thank you for giving me a chance to listen on the internet. Being retired and not having money to pay for the Conference, knowing I can view at no cost is a blessing. Thank you again
Dianne Sabido
I registered October ,shortly after after RootsTech registration opened. Both my daughter and I are Family History and Temple Consultants. I paid $169 for both my daughter and I (both Consultants) to register, not knowing that I should have registered using my calling’s discounted price of $129.00 I am asking for a refund of $40.00 x 2. To whom do I address my request, please since the link noted below isn’t working?
Thank you.
Linda, I recommend contacting info@rootstech.org I hope this helps!
I am a Stake Temple & Family History consultant. Do you have a list of which classes will be covered online so I can notify the members of my stake in Louisiana what will be available to watch on each day and the times?
Roy, more information is coming about which classes will be available online.
When and how will we find out just what will be online? I see this as an opportunity for viewing at our Stake Family History Center.
You can see the schedule for which classes will be streamed online here.
You can see the schedule for which classes will be streamed online here.
How do I contact a live person? I am a stake temple and family history consultant, and want to attend just Feb 28th and the free Saturday sessions. Don’t tell me to go to info@rootstech.org; I can write a message, but cannot send it anywhere.
Connie, what happens when you try to send an email?
Is there a way to purchase the syllabus when you can’t go to Roots-tech because of having surgery.
RootsTech 2018
Just returned from RootsTech, the monster genealogy convention in Salt Lake City. The presentations and exhibitors were amazing, as were the keynote speakers. Jason Hewlett, the emcee for the week was exceptionally good. The presenters were world-class, and material offered greatly beneficial.
The breakout sessions, which ranged from 14-20 per time slot, offered an amazing breadth of subject matter, and presenters were among the best in the industry from all over the world.
The paper syllabus (at $50), was nearly 2 inches thick as was heavy enough to throw out a shoulder. The $10 thumb drive was far preferable, though not knowing this prior to the event meant leaving the syllabus at my hotel. Having purchased the thumb drive, I doubt I will ever look at the volume-sized paper syllabus.
The RootsTech smartphone app was excellent but failed to integrate with the live event sufficient enough to inform the user that a given breakout session was already full, forcing 10-15 minute walks in the opposite direction to try and find an open session- only to be turned away again. Extremely frustrating.
The Salt Palace is certainly a world-class facility, on par with any of the conventions centers in the USA. It is clean, well-lit, and well maintained.
I am told there were about 32,000 attendees, certainly not too many for the size of the Salt Palace, but far too many for the breakout sessions offered.
Getting into sessions was a bit of a fiasco with the new scanning of individual name-tags for every session. Lines to get into sessions blocked the main thoroughfare creating gridlock at times, and it was often necessary to arrive in the line up to an hour before the start of a session in order to get in, as attendees who skipped the earlier time slot session were already waiting in line for upcoming sessions. Some sessions actually had empty seats, even though the door monitors refused entry, as their scanning software said the session was full.
Food lines at lunchtime were horrendous, also blocking the main convention center aisle for those simply trying to exit sessions, move to the Expo, or even leave the facility. Restrooms became overly crowded during breaks and floors could not be kept clean and free of excessive water at times.
Overall, the event was exceptionally good, and I will return, provided the planners address these issues. Of greatest importance, would be to either increase the number of breakout sessions per timeslot or increase the size of the rooms they were offered in. Overall, for a conference of this type, i.e., where people are moving about between breakout sessions, and all trying to purchase lunch from onsite vendors, in my own assessment, 32,000 participants is simply too may attendees for this venue. Either raise the price, cut off the registration at approximately 25,000 total, or select a larger venue. Or, take advantage of the entire venue, including the food vendor area at the back of the Expo.
By all means:
1. Take advantage of the data acquired from the scanning fiasco to increase the size of the rooms where sessions were full;
2. Use the online registration to determine the level of interest in the various breakout sessions so as to select room sizes based on attendee interest at the time of online registration;
3. Upgrade the RootsTech app to provide instantaneous information on breakout sessions, i.e., inform users of the app that a session is full so attendees are not wandering around a huge facility looking for an open session, only to use up the entire time slot, never finding a session to attend;
4. BETTER STILL: Allow attendees to select their breakout sessions at the time of online registration (or at any time after registering, but before the actual conference), so as to guarantee a seat for those who have the foresight to pre-register into breakout sessions, then allow for sufficient additional seating for those who make their breakout decisions after arriving for the conference; regardless of how you do this, by all means, allow people to BOOK their breakout sessions either ONLINE or on the APP (OR BOTH) so attendees are not turned away from sessions they specifically attended RootsTech in order to attend;
5. DO NOT prevent people from entering breakout sessions early- this created terrible human traffic gridlock in the main aisles of the facility; DO NOT have the lines to enter sessions extend out into the main aisle of the convention center- this was horrible! Use alternative entrances to the various sessions so that people exiting a session are not able to get out because the line to reenter is blocking the exit pathway; Do not make attendees who have preregistered for sessions that are in the same room as their next session leave the room, only to get into a line where they will not be admitted for the next session because it fills up before they can gain access to the next session- FIX THIS! It is critical to the success of RootsTech.
6. I noticed that the Food Vendor area INSIDE the EXPO arena was completely empty! BIG MISTAKE! Move the food, i.e. lunch vendors OUT OF THE MAIN EXPO AISLE, so that the lunch lines don’t block the entire event, shutting down foot traffic in the main aisle completely.
7. Move all of the vendors who had booths in the main aisle out of that thoroughfare, and either into the EXPO area or someplace where the lines those vendors create don’t cause gridlock in the main aisle of the convention center;
8. Add at least one additional RootsTech information booth closer to the N. Temple entrance of the facility (such as close to the area where the photo contest took place- maybe on that upper level, or close to the bag and coat check area) so that attendees are not forced to try and navigate the main aisle all the way to the far end of the facility just to ask RootsTech related questions. There were at least 3-4 different information booths throughout the convention center that offered Salt Palace information, but none of these people had a clue concerning RootsTech! Place a RootsTech info person (along with the Salt Palace info people) at each of these booths.
9. Plan on sufficient custodial personnel to ensure that restroom facilities remain clean and fully stocked at all times- dirty or unsanitary restrooms, especially excessive water on the floors of stalls are a major turnoff.
10. Never again, try to institute a new procedure, such as nametag scanning for breakout sessions without knowing the possible outcomes, i.e. gridlock, unwieldy lines, turn-aways, sessions where there were empty seats and monitors were turning away attendees (YES, it happened often- as monitors did not see empty seats in the middle of rows, etc); get your research on new ideas from places where it has been done before; in my very first breakout session with Diahan Southard and Lisa Louise Cooke, the session was delayed for more than 30 minutes, as monitors fist forced hundreds of attendees already seated to leave the room, creating a horrendous unmanageable crowd outside the session, then shouted to the crowd to go back in- failing to scan nametags at all in the process. Major fiasco during the opening breakout session of the entire week- left a really bad taste in the mouths of everyone. Actually called into question the planning capabilities of the RootsTech staff and planners.
Finally, RootsTech was an awesome experience- great event- will plan on returning- BUT, fix the issues listed above.
Dan, did you receive an email from RootsTech asking to take a survey and provide feedback? That would be the appropriate place to relay all of this information to make sure RootsTech employees see it. Thank you!