W. Rand Smith is the Irvin L. and Fern D. Young Presidential Professor of Politics and Associate Dean of the Faculty at Lake Forest College, where he has taught since 1977. Professor Smith earned his B.A. degree (Political Science, Honors) at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and received his M.A. and Ph.D. in Political Science from the University of Michigan. He has also taught at Michigan, Northwestern University, the Ecole Nationale Superieure des Mines (Paris), the Institut d'Etudes Politiques de Grenoble, and the Associated Colleges of the Midwest Program in Florence, Italy.

Professor Smith regularly teaches courses on European and Latin American politics and political economy, as well as U.S. Energy and Environmental Policy. He has also taught a First Year Studies seminar, Roots Music in American Society, which reflects his passion for folk music. At Lake Forest, he has served as chair of the Politics Department, associate dean of faculty (1995-2000 and 2010-present), and interim provost and dean of the faculty (2004-2005).

Professor Smith's research interests have focused on the politics of the Left in France, Italy, and Spain. He has carried out fieldwork and interviews in all three countries in the course of writing three books and many articles related to the parties, unions, and governments of the Left.