Dean Wesley Smith was born in the Philippines and emigrated to America at age five. He graduated from Brigham Young University in 1971 with a bachelor's degree in English and a minor in Journalism. In 1979 he received his master's degree from the University of Utah, where he studied classics. In addition, Dean received a master's degree from BYU in 1982 and a second master's degree from BYU in 1993
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Dean also holds an honorary doctorate from Highland College. Throughout his life, Dean has devoted considerable effort to studying the scriptures, including the Book of Mormon. Dean was born again at age nine and remained faithful to Christ throughout his life.
His wife, Sheri L. Smith, an educational psychologist, is the co-author of the classic series "How to Teach Your Child." Dean is also an accomplished poet who published two volumes of poetry with Daughters of God Publishing.