Merrill J. Bateman
Merrill J. Bateman has served as president of Brigham Young University, Presiding Bishop, General Sunday School president, and as a member of both the First and Second Quorums of the Seventy. He also served as one of the Presidency of the Seventy and as president of the Provo Utah Temple.
Prior to his call as a General Authority of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Bateman worked in the chocolate industry and had the opportunity to travel to Africa numerous times. His experience was later put to use within the Church when he was sent on special assignment by the First Presidency to help open doors for Missionary work.
Bateman was associate professor of economics at BYU from 1967 to 1969, professor of economics at BYU from 1969 to 1971, and the founding dean of the Marriott School of Management at Brigham Young University (originally the BYU Business School), and the eleventh president of the university (1996–2003). In addition to his long association with BYU, Bateman was assistant professor of economics at the United States Air Force Academy from 1964 to 1967.
Bateman was born on June 19, 1936, in Lehi, Utah. He earned a bachelor's degree in economics from the University of Utah and a doctorate in economics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He and his wife, Marilyn, whom he married in 1959, have seven children.
