On opposite sides of the Bay Area, two commencements advocated for the new graduates to be aware of the power they now have in creating change for the betterment of all people.
In Berkeley, the Jesuit School of Theology of Santa Clara University were honoring their newly minted theologians, while in Santa Clara, the Santa Clara University School of Law commemorated the Class of 2024.
Uniting the region in hope and celebration, each of the commencement speakers stressed how the Jesuit teachings and values of Santa Clara University should be carried out in the new graduates’ lives.
At All Souls Episcopal Parish in Berkeley, María Pilar Aquino, S.T.D, an acclaimed feminist theologian, was the speaker and honorary degree recipient. In Aquino’s speech, she focused on interculturality, and how people can gather together through the power of an embodied theology. It can unite people from different cultures to start constructing “a more just and peaceful world, so that a reconciled humanity and creation can be actualized,” she said.
In the University’s Leavey Center at Santa Clara, the commencement speaker was Vernā Myers, an author, lawyer, and pioneer in the areas of inclusion and diversity. Myer’s speech showcased how the law can be utilized in growing communities based on goodwill, providing a voice for the underrepresented, and deconstructing injustices that are prevalent in today’s world.
On May 18, 2024, JST had forty-five students that obtained 58 degrees, and 211 graduates received various degrees from Santa Clara Law.
Watch the livestreams of both graduations.