Janelle
Adams
Assistant Professor of Religion
Office
Presser Hall Lower Level
Office 10
Phone
785.227.3380 x. 8131
adamsjl@bethanylb.edu
Biography
Janelle Adams joined the faculty at Bethany College as Assistant Professor of Religion in 2025.
She completed her Ph.D. in Religion at Emory University, with a focus in social ethics and practical theology. Her dissertation, Lessons in Shared Sufficiency: How Refugees and Community Partners Practice Belonging at a Faith-Based Community Hub, employs qualitative methods to investigate practices of belonging in the context of refugee resettlement.
Janelle’s broader research agenda explores the innovative ways faith-based groups and movements draw on the resources of religion to respond to the most pressing challenges of our time. Her work has been published in Practical Theology, the Journal of Pastoral Theology, Center for Migration Studies Essays, and the edited volume Pathways to Belonging.
Before coming to Bethany, Janelle taught at Spelman College and Candler School of Theology and served as a researcher with the Forum for Theological Exploration’s Discernment Labs initiative. She holds a Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology and a B.A. in Religious Studies from Rhodes College. Prior to her academic career, Janelle worked in refugee resettlement and spiritual care education.
When she’s not teaching or writing, she enjoys reading mystery novels and dabbling in stand-up and improvisational comedy.
She completed her Ph.D. in Religion at Emory University, with a focus in social ethics and practical theology. Her dissertation, Lessons in Shared Sufficiency: How Refugees and Community Partners Practice Belonging at a Faith-Based Community Hub, employs qualitative methods to investigate practices of belonging in the context of refugee resettlement.
Janelle’s broader research agenda explores the innovative ways faith-based groups and movements draw on the resources of religion to respond to the most pressing challenges of our time. Her work has been published in Practical Theology, the Journal of Pastoral Theology, Center for Migration Studies Essays, and the edited volume Pathways to Belonging.
Before coming to Bethany, Janelle taught at Spelman College and Candler School of Theology and served as a researcher with the Forum for Theological Exploration’s Discernment Labs initiative. She holds a Master of Divinity from Candler School of Theology and a B.A. in Religious Studies from Rhodes College. Prior to her academic career, Janelle worked in refugee resettlement and spiritual care education.
When she’s not teaching or writing, she enjoys reading mystery novels and dabbling in stand-up and improvisational comedy.
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