Jerry Lee Prevo (born January 12, 1945) is an American academic administrator and retired

Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only (believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul compete ...

minister. As of 2022, he is the president of

Liberty University Liberty University (LU) is a private Baptist university in Lynchburg, Virginia. It is affiliated with the Southern Baptist Conservatives of Virginia (Southern Baptist Convention). Founded in 1971 by Jerry Falwell Sr. and Elmer L. Towns, Liberty i ...

Early life and education

Prevo was born on January 12, 1945, in

Oak Ridge, Tennessee Oak Ridge is a city in Anderson and Roane counties in the eastern part of the U.S. state of Tennessee, about west of downtown Knoxville. Oak Ridge's population was 31,402 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Knoxville Metropolitan Area. Oak ...

, to Milan and Aray Phillips Prevo. He graduated from Baptist Bible College. He did graduate work at

Belmont University Belmont University is a private Christian university in Nashville, Tennessee. Descended from Belmont Women's College, founded in 1890 by schoolteachers Ida Hood and Susan Heron, the institution was incorporated in 1951 as Belmont College. It be ...

Tennessee Temple University Tennessee Temple University was a private Christian university in Chattanooga, Tennessee. Temple Baptist Seminary was the university's graduate school of Christian theology, also operating in Chattanooga. The university merged with Piedmont Inter ...

, the

University of Tennessee The University of Tennessee (officially The University of Tennessee, Knoxville; or UT Knoxville; UTK; or UT) is a public land-grant research university in Knoxville, Tennessee. Founded in 1794, two years before Tennessee became the 16th state, ...

, and

Chapman College Chapman University is a private research university in Orange, California. It encompasses ten schools and colleges, including Fowler School of Engineering, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts, Fowler School of Law, and Schmid College of Scien ...

. A Doctor of Divinity degree was conferred on him by

Hyles–Anderson College Hyles–Anderson College (HAC) is an private independent Baptist college in unincorporated Crown Point, Lake County, Indiana.Spivak, Diane ''Hyles' birthplace to be rebuilt on campus: Texas home of college co-founder will rest at Hyles-Anderson'' ...

Career

For 47 years, Prevo was a pastor at the Anchorage Baptist Temple in

Anchorage, Alaska Anchorage () is the largest city in the U.S. state of Alaska by population. With a population of 291,247 in 2020, it contains nearly 40% of the state's population. The Anchorage metropolitan area, which includes Anchorage and the neighboring Ma ...

. In January 1980, he founded Alaska's chapter of the

Moral Majority Moral Majority was an American political organization associated with the Christian right and Republican Party. It was founded in 1979 by Baptist minister Jerry Falwell Sr. and associates, and dissolved in the late 1980s. It played a key role in ...

and began to boost

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

politicians. Upon his retirement from the Anchorage Baptist Temple in March 2019, the ''

Anchorage Daily News The ''Anchorage Daily News'' is a daily newspaper published by the Binkley Co., and based in Anchorage, Alaska. It is the most widely read newspaper and news website (adn.com) in the state of Alaska. The newspaper is headquartered in Anchorage, ...

'' referred to him as the city's "loudest evangelical voice." In 2020, Prevo was serving as chairman of the board of trustees of Liberty University when controversial photos of Jerry Falwell Jr. came to light. After Falwell resigned, Prevo was selected by the university's executive committee to serve as the school's interim president.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Prevo, Jerry Living people Baptist Bible College (Missouri) alumni Liberty University faculty Liberty University people Baptist ministers from the United States 1945 births People from Oak Ridge, Tennessee