Question re certain topics and StraighterLine DNA course

[daydream]

Are there any ACE accredited courses on these topics that transfer to TESU and/or UMPI? These happen to be some of my niches as a genealogist. If possible, I'd like to tie that knowledge in with my undergraduate study.

* Great Lakes and/or Lower Midwest History
* Canadian history, government, and/or civics
* Latin (In my case, knowing Latin is particularly useful for translating Catholic parish registers)
* French (I know that Sophia has French I.)
* World religions. Ones that touch upon Jewish, Catholic, and/or Mormon topics would be useful.

I'll probably take the StraighterLine course on DNA (assuming UMPI and/or TESU accepts it), but I'm unsure as to whether or not it is applicable to genetic genealogy. Any input regarding that course would be appreciated.

[Jonathan Whatley]

TESU and UMPI both grant credit for the French CLEP exam. Both the ACTFL and Avant Assessments also publish tests in many languages some of which tests have ACE credit recommendations. French is standard. Both also publish Latin tests, but these work differently from their living languages tests and they might not have ACE credit recommendations.

If you’re taking credits to TESU but not UMPI, you might be interested in Coopersmith Career Consulting. Its courses have credit recommendations not from ACE but from the alternative service NCCRS. TESU generally accepts NCCRS, while UMPI doesn’t accept it. Coopersmith offers many courses on Jewish topics, and a Comparative Religions course.

Two LDS church institutions offer online courses with RA credit related to genealogy. BYU Independent Study grants credit from the BYU flagship in Provo. Its courses are open enrollment and are moderately inexpensive as RA credits go.

At BYU-Pathway, you can sign up for a Certificate in Family History Research then Certificate in Advanced Family History Research and these stack towards an AAS in Family History Research, all from BYU-Idaho, a separate institution in the same education system. Some BYU-Pathway credits, certificates and degrees are instead from Ensign College. BYU-Pathway courses are less expensive than BYU IS, and are open to non-LDS, but unlike BYU IS, every Pathway student must agree to abide by the Church Educational System Honor Code including no coffee, and must interview with an LDS official and receive their ecclesiastical endorsement. Non-LDS pay 25% more.

[Mint Berry Crunch]

TESU and UMPI both grant credit for the French CLEP exam. Both the ACTFL and Avant Assessments also publish tests in many languages some of which tests have ACE credit recommendations. French is standard. Both also publish Latin tests, but these work differently from their living languages tests and they might not have ACE credit recommendations.

If you’re taking credits to TESU but not UMPI, you might be interested in Coopersmith Career Consulting. Its courses have credit recommendations not from ACE but from the alternative service NCCRS. TESU generally accepts NCCRS, while UMPI doesn’t accept it. Coopersmith offers many courses on Jewish topics, and a Comparative Religions course.

Two LDS church institutions offer online courses with RA credit related to genealogy. BYU Independent Study grants credit from the BYU flagship in Provo. Its courses are open enrollment and are moderately inexpensive as RA credits go.

At BYU-Pathway, you can sign up for a Certificate in Family History Research then Certificate in Advanced Family History Research and these stack towards an AAS in Family History Research, all from BYU-Idaho, a separate institution in the same education system. Some BYU-Pathway credits, certificates and degrees are instead from Ensign College. BYU-Pathway courses are less expensive than BYU IS, and are open to non-LDS, but unlike BYU IS, every Pathway student must agree to abide by the Church Educational System Honor Code including no coffee, and must interview with an LDS official and receive their ecclesiastical endorsement. Non-LDS pay 25% more.

According to the Student Honor and Conduct:

• Maintain an ecclesiastical endorsement, including striving to deepen faith and maintain gospel standards.
  
• Be honest.
  
• Live a chaste and virtuous life, including abstaining from sexual relations outside marriage between a man and a woman. Living a chaste and virtuous life also includes abstaining from same-sex romantic behavior.
  
• Abstain from alcoholic beverages, tobacco, tea, coffee, vaping, marijuana, and other substance abuse.
  
• Participate regularly in Church services.
  
• Respect others, including the avoidance of profane and vulgar language.
  
• Avoid clothing that is revealing, as well as extremes in clothing, appearance, and hairstyle. In dress, grooming, and manners, we should always be neat and clean, never sloppy.
  
• Encourage others in their commitment to comply with the Honor Code and dress and grooming standards.
  

First time I've ever seen an honor code like this before, then again, I've never attended a religious-based school

[daydream]

TESU and UMPI both grant credit for the French CLEP exam. Both the ACTFL and Avant Assessments also publish tests in many languages some of which tests have ACE credit recommendations. French is standard. Both also publish Latin tests, but these work differently from their living languages tests and they might not have ACE credit recommendations.

If you’re taking credits to TESU but not UMPI, you might be interested in Coopersmith Career Consulting. Its courses have credit recommendations not from ACE but from the alternative service NCCRS. TESU generally accepts NCCRS, while UMPI doesn’t accept it. Coopersmith offers many courses on Jewish topics, and a Comparative Religions course.

Two LDS church institutions offer online courses with RA credit related to genealogy. BYU Independent Study grants credit from the BYU flagship in Provo. Its courses are open enrollment and are moderately inexpensive as RA credits go.

At BYU-Pathway, you can sign up for a Certificate in Family History Research then Certificate in Advanced Family History Research and these stack towards an AAS in Family History Research, all from BYU-Idaho, a separate institution in the same education system. Some BYU-Pathway credits, certificates and degrees are instead from Ensign College. BYU-Pathway courses are less expensive than BYU IS, and are open to non-LDS, but unlike BYU IS, every Pathway student must agree to abide by the Church Educational System Honor Code including no coffee, and must interview with an LDS official and receive their ecclesiastical endorsement. Non-LDS pay 25% more.

Thank you. The Coopersmith selection of history, religious studies, and Hebrew courses are really interesting. It looks like a good way to obtain UL credit.

As for RA credit, I have plenty through prior community college courses. I've met a few people who have studied family history at BYU and/or taught there. It is without a doubt a prestigious program. However, it isn't a viable option for me. I am in a lesbian relationship, so I can't get an ecclesiastical endorsement. Regardless, I think my background would make me particularly adept at handling Mormon genealogical topics. I grew up unaware of my Mormon roots, so I wouldn't consider myself ideologically biased (be it in a negative or positive way). Learning about that aspect of myself is what got me into genealogy. 

My plan is to get CG and/or AG certification, as opposed to attending a dedicated university program. I think taking history, language, and religion classes are my best bet. Most certified genealogists go that route. There are additional certifications like CGG and CGL that can be obtained after (or multiple regional AG certifications).

[wow]

First time I've ever seen an honor code like this before, then again, I've never attended a religious-based school

BYU-Idaho has a more conservative reputation than the original BYU (BYU-Provo in Utah) and historically their honor code has been stricter, particularly re: dressing and grooming standards. If I remember correctly, though, a few years ago they made the honor codes at both schools the same.

If you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you are not expected to attend their Church services regularly. You are supposed to follow (most of) the rest of the rules, though. I thought non-members used to get a pass on drinking coffee/tea if they did it off campus. That may have changed. I'm more out of the loop these days.

---

I've met a few people who have studied family history at BYU and/or taught there. It is without a doubt a prestigious program. However, it isn't a viable option for me. I am in a lesbian relationship, so I can't get an ecclesiastical endorsement. Regardless, I think my background would make me particularly adept at handling Mormon genealogical topics. I grew up unaware of my Mormon roots, so I wouldn't consider myself ideologically biased (be it in a negative or positive way). Learning about that aspect of myself is what got me into genealogy. 

I thought BYU Independent Study does not require an ecclesiastical endorsement?

That said, what I've gathered from people who have taken religion classes at BYU is that it's not much different or more in depth than what you can get from a deep dive into the various publications on class subjects available on http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org. They don't treat the subjects academically, but from a faith perspective. That's not academically worthless--one can learn a lot about another faith by seeing how its practitioners understand it--but if you don't need the credits, *actual* independent study suffices, IMHO. If you're under 30, you might be able to get yourself an invitation to the same classes at your local Institute (organization for college-aged members). I've attended Institute classes without being a member and without an endorsement.

Finding academically oriented classes on LDS/Mormon topics is difficult. I've been looking for years and not found anything yet. That's not saying they don't exist at all. Contacting secular schools with Mormon Studies programs would be a place to start.

When you mentioned the Saylor DNA course, do you mean cellular and molecular biology? I took that course and think it's a good background to have for understanding genetics. I've also taken some excellent courses on MITX and Coursera to deepen understanding in this area.

Feel free to DM me about any of this or Judaic studies. I'll also keep an eye on this discussion.

[Jonathan Whatley]

It is possible the coffee restriction is interpreted liberally for non-LDS online students! “I’m abstaining from coffee… if and when I’m on a BYU campus or an LDS church facility…” I was just going by a quick and strict-leaning reading of the Code.

[daydream]

First time I've ever seen an honor code like this before, then again, I've never attended a religious-based school

BYU-Idaho has a more conservative reputation than the original BYU (BYU-Provo in Utah) and historically their honor code has been stricter, particularly re: dressing and grooming standards. If I remember correctly, though, a few years ago they made the honor codes at both schools the same.

If you are not a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, you are not expected to attend their Church services regularly. You are supposed to follow (most of) the rest of the rules, though. I thought non-members used to get a pass on drinking coffee/tea if they did it off campus. That may have changed. I'm more out of the loop these days.

---

I've met a few people who have studied family history at BYU and/or taught there. It is without a doubt a prestigious program. However, it isn't a viable option for me. I am in a lesbian relationship, so I can't get an ecclesiastical endorsement. Regardless, I think my background would make me particularly adept at handling Mormon genealogical topics. I grew up unaware of my Mormon roots, so I wouldn't consider myself ideologically biased (be it in a negative or positive way). Learning about that aspect of myself is what got me into genealogy. 

I thought BYU Independent Study does not require an ecclesiastical endorsement?

That said, what I've gathered from people who have taken religion classes at BYU is that it's not much different or more in depth than what you can get from a deep dive into the various publications on class subjects available on http://www.churchofjesuschrist.org. They don't treat the subjects academically, but from a faith perspective. That's not academically worthless--one can learn a lot about another faith by seeing how its practitioners understand it--but if you don't need the credits, *actual* independent study suffices, IMHO. If you're under 30, you might be able to get yourself an invitation to the same classes at your local Institute (organization for college-aged members). I've attended Institute classes without being a member and without an endorsement.

Finding academically oriented classes on LDS/Mormon topics is difficult. I've been looking for years and not found anything yet. That's not saying they don't exist at all. Contacting secular schools with Mormon Studies programs would be a place to start.

When you mentioned the Saylor DNA course, do you mean cellular and molecular biology? I took that course and think it's a good background to have for understanding genetics. I've also taken some excellent courses on MITX and Coursera to deepen understanding in this area.

Feel free to DM me about any of this or Judaic studies. I'll also keep an eye on this discussion.

My understanding is that BYU Independent Study requires an ecclesiastical endorsement. Thank you for the institute class recommendation. I'll try out the online institute classes. The course availability at my local institute is very limited.

As for the Saylor DNA course, I actually meant Straighterline's Principles of Genetics course (oops!). Apparently, it's ACE recommended. I don't know if the information in the course is applicable to genetic genealogy or not.

On a related note, I just booked a trip to SLC. I'm going there in September. I figure it'll give me some insight into my ancestors' background, even though my Mormon ancestors never made it to Utah. I think I will visit the Utah State Capitol, Church History Museum, Gilgal Gardens, and the FamilySearch Library. Do you have any recommendations for things to do around SLC?

[Jonathan Whatley]

My understanding is that BYU Independent Study requires an ecclesiastical endorsement.

It doesn’t.

• BYU-Pathway does require an ecclesiastical endorsement (except to take the first few cornerstone orientation-type courses under the PathwayConnect option). BYU-Pathway credits and diplomas are granted by BYU-Idaho or by Ensign College.
  
• BYU Independent Study is separate. It requires no ecclesiastical endorsement, nor compliance with an LDS lifestyle conduct code. Its credits are granted by BYU proper, the flagship in Provo.
  

[wow]

As for the Saylor DNA course, I actually meant Straighterline's Principles of Genetics course (oops!). Apparently, it's ACE recommended. I don't know if the information in the course is applicable to genetic genealogy or not.

I haven't taken that one. I took Study.com's genetics course and it was decent. Lots of stuff about mechanisms of heredity, if that's applicable to genetic genealogy. I don't really know anything about that specialty.

On a related note, I just booked a trip to SLC. I'm going there in September. I figure it'll give me some insight into my ancestors' background, even though my Mormon ancestors never made it to Utah. I think I will visit the Utah State Capitol, Church History Museum, Gilgal Gardens, and the FamilySearch Library. Do you have any recommendations for things to do around SLC?

I haven't been in years. I'm not sure if Temple Square will be reopened by then (they just finished the seismic work on the temple), but if so, I would definitely do a missionary-guided tour of Temple Square, unless talking to missionaries makes you uncomfortable. I've had fun on mine. I did one with my dad who answered the missionary's "Doesn't it sound great to spend all of eternity with your family?" with "Mmmm ... I'm not so sure about that." If not, a missionary guided tour of whatever they're guiding people around is good.

I've never been to the Beehive House but wish I had.

Not sure where your ancestors were located, but there are some really interesting sites in Illinois, Missouri, and Ohio, too. I like those sites because you can often get the LDS version of events, but also the version from the Community of Christ (formerly the Restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or RLDS; a branch that did not accept Brigham Young as the second modern prophet but rather Joseph Smith Jr.'s son) and sometimes other denominations as well. CoC takes a very academic approach to LDS history; not completely neutral because they have their own perspective on things, but more neutral than the Salt Lake church. Unfortunately, their historical sites budget is pretty small, so scheduling ahead is often necessary, while the LDS tours are often available as drop-in.

[daydream]

As for the Saylor DNA course, I actually meant Straighterline's Principles of Genetics course (oops!). Apparently, it's ACE recommended. I don't know if the information in the course is applicable to genetic genealogy or not.

I haven't taken that one. I took Study.com's genetics course and it was decent. Lots of stuff about mechanisms of heredity, if that's applicable to genetic genealogy. I don't really know anything about that specialty.

On a related note, I just booked a trip to SLC. I'm going there in September. I figure it'll give me some insight into my ancestors' background, even though my Mormon ancestors never made it to Utah. I think I will visit the Utah State Capitol, Church History Museum, Gilgal Gardens, and the FamilySearch Library. Do you have any recommendations for things to do around SLC?

I haven't been in years. I'm not sure if Temple Square will be reopened by then (they just finished the seismic work on the temple), but if so, I would definitely do a missionary-guided tour of Temple Square, unless talking to missionaries makes you uncomfortable. I've had fun on mine. I did one with my dad who answered the missionary's "Doesn't it sound great to spend all of eternity with your family?" with "Mmmm ... I'm not so sure about that." If not, a missionary guided tour of whatever they're guiding people around is good.

I've never been to the Beehive House but wish I had.

Not sure where your ancestors were located, but there are some really interesting sites in Illinois, Missouri, and Ohio, too. I like those sites because you can often get the LDS version of events, but also the version from the Community of Christ (formerly the Restored Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints or RLDS; a branch that did not accept Brigham Young as the second modern prophet but rather Joseph Smith Jr.'s son) and sometimes other denominations as well. CoC takes a very academic approach to LDS history; not completely neutral because they have their own perspective on things, but more neutral than the Salt Lake church. Unfortunately, their historical sites budget is pretty small, so scheduling ahead is often necessary, while the LDS tours are often available as drop-in.

Heredity would definitely be applicable to genetic genealogy.

Temple Square has apparently reopened to the public. However, the Beehive House undergoing renovation. I suppose I could walk by though. I don't mind chatting with the missionaries, but I'm in agreement with your father. I've been to sacrament meetings before and I was a bit baffled by the extreme displays of emotion.

I definitely want to visit Nauvoo, Kirktland, and Palmyra eventually. Palmyra would be relatively inexpensive to visit because I can buy flights to Rochester with points. It would be cool to see the Smith family farm, the Harris family farm, the Sacred Grove, and the Grandin Printshop. I also have ancestry from Ontario and Quebec, which has been my main focus as of late. It would be easy to take Amtrak up there.

My ancestors are among the aforementioned people that rejected mainstream Mormonism. Emma Smith, my great-times-five grandmother, did not like Brigham Young. Consequently, my great-times-four granduncle founded the Community of Christ. My great-times-four grandfather Alexander was an RLDS missionary. Later generations of my biological relatives (excluding my mother and biological grandmother) were RLDS. I grew up in Kansas City, so I've seen most of the historic sites in Independence. My cousin's high school graduation was at the Community of Christ temple.