About

Rev. Jamar A. Boyd, II serves as the 17th pastor of Kenwood United Church of Christ in Chicago, IL, and concurrently as the Associate, Office of the President at the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

His academic foundation includes a Bachelor of Science in Sports Management and Business from Georgia Southern University and a Master of Divinity from The Samuel DeWitt Proctor School of Theology at Virginia Union University. Rev. Boyd was also a graduate fellow of The GIFT Collaborative of Black Theological Education & Black Faith Traditions and a Fellow of the Racial Justice & Religion Collective of the Aspen Institute.

Before his current roles, Rev. Boyd was the Senior Manager of Organizational Impact for the Samuel DeWitt Proctor Conference, Inc., contributing to the organizational strategy for engaging African American clergy and emerging leaders in racial justice. He also held positions as both a Justice Reform Organizer and an Economic Justice Organizer at the Virginia Interfaith Center for Public Policy.

From 2014 to 2019, Rev. Boyd was an officer and ultimately President of the Georgia State Conference NAACP Youth & College Division, where he was certified as an NAACP National Electoral Trainer. His advocacy work during this period included participation in the 2018 Environmental and Climate Justice symposium and both the 2018 and 2019 NAACP National Conventions. In 2019, he was honored with the inaugural “Charles & Adrienne White Student Activism Award.” He continued his leadership as Youth Works Chairman for the Georgia State Conference NAACP from October 2019 to February 2022.

Rev. Boyd first answered his call to gospel ministry in 2014, officially becoming licensed on May 1, 2016, at Agape Worship Center in Statesboro, Georgia. There, he gained invaluable experience as a Pastoral Assistant under the mentorship of Rev. Donald Chavers, Jr. His formative years also included a pivotal role as Director of Youth Ministry at Saint Smyrna Baptist Church in Newnan, Georgia, serving under Rev. Tamarkus T. Cook.

Following his move to Richmond, Virginia, Rev. Boyd partnered with Bishop Clarence L. Sellers, Jr. at Dominion Church of God in Christ in Portsmouth, Virginia. Concurrently, while pursuing his seminary studies, he served as a Pastoral Assistant–Student Intern at Cedar Street Baptist Church in Richmond, Virginia. This dedicated journey culminated in the successful completion of his Master of Divinity, leading to his ordination on July 11, 2020, by Rev. Dr. Anthony M. Chandler, Sr., a momentous occasion affirmed by the Cedar Street Baptist Church congregation.

Rev. Boyd is a featured contributor to “Preaching During a Pandemic: The Rhetoric of the Black Preaching Tradition, Volume I,” and his insightful writings have graced the pages of Abernathy Magazine, Baptist News Global, Faithfully Magazine, Faith and Leadership, Medium, and Sojourners Magazine.

His commitment to social impact is evident in his service on the Board of Directors for The Oikos Institute for Social Impact and as a member of the Hyde Park & Kenwood Interfaith Council. Furthermore, he actively champions Black theological education as a consultant for The Collaborative. Looking ahead, Rev. Boyd is also the co-editor of the forthcoming book, “Complicit No More: Truth, Justice, and the Awakening of Black Faith Communities,” set to be published by Routledge Press.

“And a higher level of consciousness among the people is the only hope we have, now or in the future, of minimizing human damage.” - James Baldwin