Kent Mikkelsen received a BA in Economics from Brigham Young University and a PhD in Economics from Yale University. In government and private consulting, he analyzed business behavior in connection with regulation and litigation. He currently serves as an elders quorum president and an ordinance worker in the Washington D.C. Temple. He and his wife, Karen, have three grown daughters and twelve grandchildren. He has sung with symphonic chorales and chamber choirs for nearly 40 years.