At the time he was selected for the position, Yates was an engineer at the power plant in Murray. He was also serving as a member of the Granite Stake's high council and had been on a missionary committee. With this assignment, he worked with Merrill to develop the curriculum, which was based on the Old Testament, New Testament, Book of Mormon, and church history. They worked with schools and administrators so that students would be able to leave campus during their free study block. Yates also helped oversee construction of the building used for seminary, which was finished in 1912.