Michael K. Young

Michael Kent Young (born November 4, 1949)

Career After law school, his judicial clerkships, and positions at two law firms, Young joined the United States Department of State and served as Deputy Legal Adviser, Deputy Under Secretary for Economic and Agricultural Affairs, and Ambassador for Trade and Environmental Affairs in the Bush administration. Among many other international agreements, Young worked on treaties related to German unification, as well as the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and Uruguay Round negotiations leading to the World Trade Organization and Earth Summit.

Following his work at the United States Department of State, Young became a professor and administrator at Columbia University from 1994 to 1998 and at George Washington University from 1998 to 2004.

Young served as the 14th president of the University of Utah from August 2004 He served as the 31rd president of the University of Washington from July 2011 to April 2015.

Texas A&M University Young became president of Texas A&M University in May 2015.

Young announced his intention to retire from the presidency of Texas A&M University on September 2, 2020, to be effective in May 2021. In November, the university announced that the resignation would take effect earlier on December 31, 2020. Young expressed his desire to join the Bush School of Government and Public Service at the Texas A&M University, where he would become the first director of the Institute for Religious Liberties and International Affairs.

Boards and organizations Young served on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom from 1998 to 2005, including twice serving as its chair. and a fellow of the American Bar Foundation.

Personal life He served as president of the New York Stake of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints from 1985 to 1989.

Young married fellow BYU alumna Suzan Stewart in 1972, whom he met during her freshman year while dating her roommate, and they are the parents of three children. They divorced in 2010.

On June 3, 2011, he married Marti Denkers (Young). Young's relationship with Denkers was the subject of some controversy: Denkers was a student at the University of Utah during the time Young presided over it, and she was formerly married to Steve Denkers, a member of the wealthy Eccles family that has given hundreds of millions of dollars to the University of Utah over the years.

Honours Royal House of Portugal: Knight of the Order of Saint Michael of the Wing (2007)