William Rolfe Kerr (born June 29, 1935) is an

emeritus ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

general authority of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Christianity, Christian church that considers itself to be the Restorationism, restoration of the ...

(LDS Church). He served previously as the fifteenth

Commissioner of Church Education The Church Educational System (CES) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non–Latter-day Saint elementary, sec ...

and as

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

of the

Logan Utah Temple The Logan Utah Temple (formerly the Logan Temple) was completed in 1884, and is the fourth temple built by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second temple built in the Rocky Mountain ...

. Kerr was born in

Tremonton, Utah Tremonton is a city in Box Elder County, Utah. The population was 7,647 at the time of the 2010 census. History Although the first settlers came to the Tremonton area in 1888, it remained largely uninhabited until just before 1900, when land ag ...

, and grew up on a farm. He earned a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in agriculture from

Utah State University Utah State University (USU or Utah State) is a public land-grant research university in Logan, Utah. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. With nearly 20,000 students living on or near campus, USU is Utah's ...

(USU), where he was also the quarterback on the football team. He intending to spend his life farming, until he was offered a position as coordinator of student activities at USU after his military service. He later received a

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

in marriage and family relations and a

doctorate A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''l ...

in education. He served an LDS Church mission in the British

Mission Mission (from Latin ''missio'' "the act of sending out") may refer to: Organised activities Religion *Christian mission, an organized effort to spread Christianity *Mission (LDS Church), an administrative area of The Church of Jesus Christ of ...

. While at USU, Kerr played football and was the starting quarterback in 1958.

Career

Kerr made his career in the field of learning, serving in administrative positions at USU,

Weber State Weber State University (pronounced ) is a public university in Ogden, Utah. It was founded in 1889 as Weber Stake Academy. It is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities. History Weber State University was founded ...

College and the

University of Utah The University of Utah (U of U, UofU, or simply The U) is a public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah. It is the flagship institution of the Utah System of Higher Education. The university was established in 1850 as the University of De ...

President of Dixie State College

From 1976 to 1980 he was

of Dixie State College of Utah (DSC). Under his leadership, DSC began a

cooperative education Cooperative education (or co-operative education) is a structured method of combining classroom-based education with practical work experience. A cooperative education experience, commonly known as a "co-op", provides academic credit for struct ...

work program. He also worked to increase ties and cooperation between the college and the surrounding community.

Executive Vice President of Brigham Young University

Kerr was executive vice president of

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day ...

(BYU) from 1980 to 1984.

Stephen R. Covey Stephen Richards Covey (October 24, 1932 – July 16, 2012) was an American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker. His most popular book is '' of Highly Effective People''. His other books include '' First Things First'', ''Pr ...

quoted Kerr's personal mission statement in ''

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People ''The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People'', first published in 1989, is a business and self-help book written by Stephen R. Covey. Covey presents an approach to being effective in attaining goals by aligning oneself to what he calls "true nort ...

''.

Commissioner of the Utah System of Higher Education

Kerr had been serving as commissioner of the

Utah System of Higher Education The Utah System of Higher Education (USHE) is the public university system of the state of Utah. It includes each of the state's sixteen public institutions of higher education, including its eight technical colleges. History On March 21, 1969, ...

since 1985 when he was called as

of the church's

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Dallas Dallas () is the List of municipalities in Texas, third largest city in Texas and the largest city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of metropolitan statistical areas, fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States at 7.5 ...

Mission in 1993.

LDS Church service

Kerr also served in the LDS Church as a

stake president A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name "stake" derives from the Book of Isaiah: "enlarge the place of thy tent; stretch forth the curtains of thine h ...

, bishop's counselor,

high councilor A stake is an administrative unit composed of multiple congregations in certain denominations of the Latter Day Saint movement. The name "stake" derives from the Book of Isaiah: "enlarge the place of thy tent; stretch forth the curtains of thine h ...

, and on the

Sunday School A Sunday school is an educational institution, usually (but not always) Christian in character. Other religions including Buddhism, Islam, and Judaism have also organised Sunday schools in their temples and mosques, particularly in the West. Su ...

General Board. For two years in the 1960s, he was involved in helping organize the

LDS Student Association LDS Student Association (also known as the Latter-day Saint Student Association or the LDSSA) is an organization established under the direction of the Seminaries and Institutes of Religion of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS C ...

. While still serving in Dallas, Kerr was called as a general authority and member of the

Second Quorum of the Seventy Seventy is a priesthood office in the Melchizedek priesthood of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). Traditionally, a church member holding this priesthood office is a "traveling minister" and an "especial witness" of Jes ...

on April 6, 1996, and was transferred to the

First Quorum of the Seventy First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

on April 5, 1997. As a general authority, he served in a number of

area Area is the quantity that expresses the extent of a region on the plane or on a curved surface. The area of a plane region or ''plane area'' refers to the area of a shape A shape or figure is a graphics, graphical representation of an obje ...

presidencies prior to being appointed as the

Commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to in ...

of the

Church Educational System The Church Educational System (CES) of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non–Latter-day Saint elementary, sec ...

(CES) in 2005. He was released from the First Quorum of the Seventy and granted emeritus status on October 6, 2007, but remained as CES commissioner until being released on August 1, 2008, when he was succeeded by Paul V. Johnson. He then served as

of the

from 2008 to 2011.

Personal life

Kerr met Janeil Raybold at USU and they were married September 15, 1960, in the Logan Temple and have six children.Funk, Marianne
"Someone Up There Must Love Rolfe Kerr"
''

Deseret News The ''Deseret News'' () is the oldest continuously operating publication in the American west. Its multi-platform products feature journalism and commentary across the fields of politics, culture, family life, faith, sports, and entertainment. Th ...

'', May 22, 1988. Retrieved March 6, 2020. Image:Kerr graduation.JPG, Image:Graduation procession.JPG,

References

External links

News of the Church: Elder W. Rolfe Kerr appointed Commissioner of Church Education
''

Ensign An ensign is the national flag flown on a vessel to indicate nationality. The ensign is the largest flag, generally flown at the stern (rear) of the ship while in port. The naval ensign (also known as war ensign), used on warships, may be diffe ...

'', April 2005.
University of Utah Alumni Profiles: W. Rolfe Kerr
{{DEFAULTSORT:Kerr, W. Rolfe 1935 births 20th-century Mormon missionaries American general authorities (LDS Church) American Mormon missionaries in the United States Brigham Young University faculty Commissioners of Church Education (LDS Church) Utah Tech University people Living people Members of the First Quorum of the Seventy (LDS Church) Mission presidents (LDS Church) American Mormon missionaries in England People from Tremonton, Utah University of Utah faculty Utah State University faculty Weber State University faculty Young people and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Sunday School (LDS Church) people Temple presidents and matrons (LDS Church) Latter Day Saints from Utah

Career

President of Dixie State College

Executive Vice President of Brigham Young University

Commissioner of the Utah System of Higher Education

LDS Church service

Personal life

See also

References

External links