Bethany Welcomes Jana Carter as Commencement Speaker 

Bethany Theological Seminary will welcome Jana Carter as the featured speaker for its Academic Commencement Ceremony on Saturday, May 13, 2023 at 10 a.m., in Nicarry Chapel. 

Jana Carter is a third-generation Bethany Theological Seminary alumnus. She also holds a JD from University of California Berkeley School of Law. Carter began her career as a civil rights litigator in Oakland, CA, before moving to Washington, DC, to work with Search for Common Ground as their USA Director of Racial Healing, before returning to California in 2011 to produce media projects that highlight the power and possibility of empathy and bridge-building. 

Carter helped to produce the CNN primetime docuseries, The Redemption Project with Van Jones, and was awarded an Emmy for production of The Messy Truth VR Experience (2020), which seeks to create empathy using Virtual Reality technology. Her most recent project is the documentary film, The First Step, which documents bi-partisan efforts to pass prison reform legislation under the Trump administration. She lives in Los Angeles, California and is mother to two sons, Cabral (18) and Mattai (14).  

Carter’s Commencement Address is entitled, “Be the Breeze,” and she will use Psalm 147: 12-18 as her text. 

“Jana is a champion for bridging division, whether political, theological, racial, or economic, says Bethany President Jeff Carter (no relation). “With a commitment to justice, she promotes a vision for large, national change that impacts local communities and individual lives. Jana has an incredible ability to connect people around shared values and projects, knowing the power we possess when we act together for the common good.”

For more information about Commencement, including a full schedule of events, visit the Commencement page on the Bethany website.