Teachers
Brother Neil Carpenter
Neil Carpenter started teaching seminary in 2011 near Tooele, UT, and has excitedly been at the Southern Virginia Institute since 2021. Even though he is a country boy by nature, a mission in Chicago helped him also love diverse city sights, sounds, and culture. An even greater love is being with his wife and five children. With an undergraduate degree in geology, he uses any excuse to spend time with his beautiful family outdoors. Insatiable curiosity drove his pursuit of advanced degrees in education, but he believes the greatest lessons of life come from trusting in the Lord and moving forward with faith. He further believes a great soul is not measured by the answers it knows but by the questions it knows to ask!
Sign up for one of Brother Carpenter's classes:
Teachings and Doctrine of The Book of Mormon, M/W 8am
Teachings and Doctrine of The Book of Mormon, M/W 9am
Teachings and Doctrine of The Book of Mormon, M/W 11am
Teachings and Doctrine of The Book of Mormon, Th 6pm
Answering My Gospel Questions, MW 1:30pm
Brother Darin Palmer
Brother Palmer has been employed with Seminaries and Institutes since 1990. He joined the faculty at the Southern Virginia Institute of Religion in 2020 and currently serves as the director of the institute in addition to his teaching responsibilities. Brother Palmer served his mission in Japan and shortly after returning married Shauna King who also served a mission in Japan. Their happy family consists of 4 bright and beautiful children, 3 best-in-the-world in-laws, 7 grandchildren and one Great Pyrenees named Baron. Their three missionary age children served in Korea, Russia and Japan. Brother Palmer loves to teach and associate with the youth of the church. He and his family stay busy recreating, traveling, and playing together. His interests include: Disneyland, reading, scuba diving, frequent travel and the Japanese language and culture.
Sign up for one of Bro. Palmer's courses:
The Divine Gift of Forgiveness, T/Th 9:30am
Brother Mark Schmidt
Brother Schmidt has been working with Seminaries and Institutes since 2012. He and his family are excited to move to Virginia and join the faculty at Southern Virginia University. Brother Schmidt has primarily taught Seminary along the Wasatch front. He served his mission in Brazil from 2000-2002 and married his wife Melanie in 2009, who served a mission in Chile. They are the blessed parents of 5 young children. One of the most satisfying things to Brother Schmidt is meeting people’s real needs, spending time with his family and working on projects. He loves to give any sport a try and loves to gather people for parties and reunions.
Sign up for one of Brother Schmidt's classes:
Foundations of the Restoration, M/W 10am
Foundations of the Restoration, M/W 12:30pm
Foundations of the Restoration, M/W 1:30pm
Teachings of President Russell M. Nelson, T/Th 11am
Brother Terrol Williams
Brother Williams has been teaching seminary and institute since 1998 and arrived at the Southern Virginia Institute in 2019. In addition to teaching (his dream job since high school), he loves the outdoors, especially hiking, backpacking, trail running, and cycling. He is always on the hunt for another great book to read, loves planning trips (even when he doesn't actually go) and particularly enjoys spending time with his wife Robin, his eight children, and his growing number of children-in-law and grandchildren.
Sign up for one of Brother Williams's courses:
Jesus Christ and His Everlasting Gospel, M/W 9am
Jesus Christ and His Everlasting Gospel, M/W 10am
Jesus Christ and His Everlasting Gospel, M/W 12:30pm
The Parables of Jesus, M/W 1:30pm
The Parables of Jesus, T/Th 12:30pm
Women in the Scriptures, T/Th 9:30am
Sister Kristen Jones
Sister Jones has been the program’s administrative assistant since 2015. Her favorite aspect of the job is interacting with the students on a daily basis. She and her husband live in Buena Vista where they’ve raised their two sons.