W. Rolfe Kerr
Encyclopedia
Temple President
Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....
of the Logan Utah Temple
Logan Utah Temple
The Logan Utah Temple is the 4th constructed and 2nd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second LDS temple built in the Rocky Mountains .The LDS temple in Logan was announced on May 18, 1877, just after the dedication...
of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). He served previously as the fifteenth Commissioner of Church Education and is an emeritus
Emeritus
Emeritus is a post-positive adjective that is used to designate a retired professor, bishop, or other professional or as a title. The female equivalent emerita is also sometimes used.-History:...
general authority
General authority
In The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , a general authority is a member of certain leadership organizations who are given administrative and ecclesiastical authority over the church...
of the LDS Church.
Kerr was called to the Second Quorum of the Seventy on April 6, 1996 and then to the First Quorum of the Seventy on April 5, 1997. He was granted emeritus status and released from the First Quorum of the Seventy on October 6, 2007 but remained as Commissioner of the Church Educational System
Church Educational System
The Church Educational System of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints consists of several institutions that provide religious and secular education for both Latter-day Saint and non-Latter-day Saint elementary, secondary, and post-secondary students and adult learners...
. He was released as CES commissioner on August 1, 2008. He was the president
Temple President
Temple president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. A temple president's primary responsibility is to supervise the affairs of an LDS temple in both an administrative and spiritual capacity....
of the Logan Utah Temple
Logan Utah Temple
The Logan Utah Temple is the 4th constructed and 2nd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second LDS temple built in the Rocky Mountains .The LDS temple in Logan was announced on May 18, 1877, just after the dedication...
from 2008 to 2011.
Kerr made his career in the field of learning, in administrative positions at Utah State University
Utah State University
Utah State University is a public university located in Logan, Utah. It is a land-grant and space-grant institution and is accredited by the Northwest Commission on Colleges and Universities....
(USU), Weber State College (now a university), the University of Utah
University of Utah
The University of Utah, also known as the U or the U of U, is a public, coeducational research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. The university was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret by the General Assembly of the provisional State of Deseret, making it Utah's oldest...
, Dixie State College of Utah
Dixie State College of Utah
Dixie State College of Utah is a college located in St. George, Utah, United States.-History:...
(where he was president), and Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University
Brigham Young University is a private university located in Provo, Utah. It is owned and operated by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints , and is the United States' largest religious university and third-largest private university.Approximately 98% of the university's 34,000 students...
. He was commissioner of the Utah System of Higher Education
Utah System of Higher Education
The Utah State Board of Regents was formed in 1969 as a governing body for the Utah System of Higher Education. It is made up of the College of Eastern Utah, Dixie State College of Utah, Salt Lake Community College, Snow College, Southern Utah University, the University of Utah, Utah College of...
when called as president
Mission president
Mission president is a priesthood leadership position in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . A mission president presides over a mission and the missionaries serving in the mission...
of the Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
Dallas Mission
Mission (LDS Church)
A mission of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints is a geographical administrative area to which church missionaries are assigned. Almost all areas of the world are within the boundaries of an LDS Church mission, whether or not Mormon missionaries live or proselytize in the area...
in 1993.
Kerr was born in Tremonton
Tremonton, Utah
Tremonton is a city in Box Elder County, Utah, United States. The population was 7,647 at the 2010 census.-Geography:Tremonton is located at ....
, Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
and grew up on a farm. He earned a bachelor’s degree in agriculture from USU, 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 in marriage and family relations and a doctorate in education.
After serving in the British Mission, Kerr met Janeil Raybold at USU. They were married 15 September 1960 in the Logan Utah Temple
Logan Utah Temple
The Logan Utah Temple is the 4th constructed and 2nd operating temple of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Located in the city of Logan, Utah, it was the second LDS temple built in the Rocky Mountains .The LDS temple in Logan was announced on May 18, 1877, just after the dedication...
. The Kerrs had six children.
Kerr was a stake president and also served in bishoprics and on the Sunday School
Sunday School (LDS Church)
Sunday School is an official auxiliary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints . All members of the church and any interested nonmembers, age 12 and older, are encouraged to participate in Sunday School.-Purpose:...
General Board. For two years in the 1960s, he was involved in helping organize the LDS Student Association
LDS Student Association
LDS Student Association is an organization affiliated with The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints which offers Latter-day Saint university and college students and others social, religious, and recreational activities.The LDSSA was established in 1960, and today a chapter of the LDSSA...
.