Early Life, Education and Early Career
Gee was born and grew up in Vernal, Utah, 171 miles (275 km) east of Salt Lake City, the son of an oil company employee and a school teacher. Raised a Mormon, he served a mission in Germany and Italy. Gee is an Eagle Scout and a recipient of the Distinguished Eagle Scout Award. Gee attended the University of Utah and graduated with a B.A. in history in 1968. After earning a J.D. from Columbia University Law School in 1971 and an Ed.D. from Teachers College, Columbia University in 1972, Gee clerked for Supreme Court Chief Justice Warren Burger for one year.
After clerking for Justice Burger, Gee accepted a position as professor and associate dean at Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah. He became dean and professor at West Virginia University's law school in 1979, and president of the university two years later. As president of a university at age 37, he was one of the youngest chief executives in academia at the time.
After a successful administration at WVU, Gee moved to the University of Colorado in 1985, then to Ohio State University in 1990. At Ohio State, Gee met and married his second wife Constance. He became president of Brown University in 1998.
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