Patrick Finnegan
General Finnegan's portrait while serving as West Point's Academic Dean in 2010
25th President of Longwood University
In office
October 22, 2010 – May 16, 2012
Preceded byDr. Patricia Picard Cormier
Succeeded byW. Taylor Reveley IV
12th Dean of United States Military Academy
In office
July 1, 2005 – June 30, 2010
Succeeded byTimothy Trainor
Personal details
Born(1949-09-20)September 20, 1949
Fukuoka, Japan
DiedJuly 2, 2018(2018-07-02) (aged 68)
Cause of deathHeart attack
SpouseJoan[1]
EducationU.S. Military Academy (BS)
Harvard University (MPA)
University of Virginia (JD)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1971–2010
Rank Brigadier General
CommandsDean of Academic Board,
U.S. Military Academy
AwardsArmy Distinguished Service Medal
Defense Superior Service Medal (2)
Legion of Merit
Bronze Star
Meritorious Service Medal (3)

Patrick Finnegan (September 20, 1949 – July 2, 2018)[2][3] was a United States Army Brigadier General, and the president of Longwood University. Finnegan served 39 years in the U.S. Army, retiring in 2010 after serving as the 12th Dean of the Academic Board at the U.S. Military Academy. Following his Army career, he was appointed as the 25th President of Longwood University in 2010. Finnegan stepped down as President in 2012 due to health reasons, and returned to private life.

Early life and family

Born in Fukuoka, Japan, to a military family, Finnegan spent most of his childhood moving across the globe. Finnegan's father, Col. John B. Finnegan, U.S. Army (Ret.), served in the Army for 32 years.[4] Finnegan graduated from the Cardinal Gibbons School in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1967. Following high school, he attended the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. While a cadet, Finnegan served as the chairman of the Honor Committee and manager of the Army Black Knights football team his senior year.[5] Finnegan graduated from West Point in 1971 and commissioned as an officer in the U.S. Army.[6]

Army career

General Finnegan had a distinguished Army career, serving as an infantry, intelligence, and Judge Advocate General's Corps officer for over 39 years.[7] Following graduation, Finnegan was selected to attend the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University where he earned a Master of Public Administration, graduating in 1973.[2] After Harvard, Finnegan attended the infantry officer's basic course and graduated from Airborne School.[7]

Finnegan's first assignment was 3rd Battalion Adjutant, 39th Infantry, 9th Infantry Division at Fort Lewis near Tacoma, Washington, from 1973 to 1974.[5] Following Fort Lewis, he served as Headquarters Company Commander, U.S. Army Security Agency, Material Support Command at Vint Hill Farms Station in Virginia from 1975 to 1976.[5] During this time, he was selected for the Army JAG Funded Legal Education Program, and was accepted to the University of Virginia School of Law in 1976.[4][5] While a law student at UVA, Finnegan served as an editor of the Virginia Law Review and was selected to join the Order of the Coif.[5][8] Finnegan graduated with a Juris Doctor in 1979.[2]

Following law school, Finnegan served his initial JAG tour with the 8th Infantry Division in Bad Kreuznach, Germany, serving as trial counsel, Chief of Administrative Law, and Chief of Military justice between 1979 and 1982.[5] In 1983, Finnegan was assigned to The Judge Advocate General's Legal Center and School in Charlottesville, Virginia, serving as a criminal law instructor and the Deputy Director of the Academic Department.[4] In 1988, Finnegan served as the Chief of Administrative and Civil Law for XVIII Airborne Corps at Fort Bragg in North Carolina.[5] During this assignment, Finnegan deployed in support of Operations Desert Shield and Desert Storm, serving as a staff judge advocate.[6] In 1991, Finnegan served as a legal advisor to Commander and staff of Joint Special Operations Command at Fort Bragg.[4][5] In 1994, he served as a Staff Judge Advocate and legal advisor to the Commander, United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM) at MacDill AFB near Tampa, Florida.[4][5] In 1996, Finnegan served as the principal legal advisor to the Supreme Allied Commander Europe, United States European Command in Stuttgart, Germany.[4][5]

In 1998, Finnegan returned to his Alma Mater, the U.S. Military Academy as the Staff Judge Advocate.[5] While at West Point, Finnegan was appointed the Head of the Department of Law and served as a professor.[5] In 2005, Finnegan was recommended and approved for the rank of Brigadier General, to serve as the 12th Dean of the Academic Board at West Point.[9] While serving as the Dean, Finnegan traveled to Hollywood with several FBI interrogators to voice concerns to the producers of the hit TV series 24.[10] Finnegan expressed concerns that featuring torture on the TV series could damage the international image of the United States, and might sway public opinion in favor of torture as a tactic in war.[11][12] Finnegan, along with several others at the meeting, urged the producers to limit the use of torture in the TV series.[11] While serving as Dean, West Point received numerous accolades, including being ranked the #1 Public College in the Nation by Forbes magazine and the best Public Liberal Arts College by the Princeton Review.[13] Finnegan continued in his post as Dean until he announced his retirement from active duty in 2010.[7]

President of Longwood University

In 2010, Longwood University announced it had selected Finnegan as the 25th President of the school.[6] While serving as President, Finnegan undertook several initiatives that included the creation of an academic strategic plan that was collaborated campus-wide, securing Longwood University's membership in the NCAA Division I Big South Conference, and creating an Office of Sponsored Programs and Research to aide in funding for faculty research projects.[14] In 2012, citing health reasons, Finnegan announced he would be stepping down as President.[15]

Death

In July 2018, Finnegan died of an apparent heart attack.[3]

Awards and decorations[5]

U.S. military decorations
Width-44 white ribbon with width-10 scarlet stripes at edges, separated from the white by width-2 ultramarine blue stripes. Army Distinguished Service Medal
Bronze oak leaf cluster
 Defense Superior Service Medal (with 1 bronze oak leaf cluster)
Width-44 crimson ribbon with a pair of width-2 white stripes on the edges Legion of Merit
Bronze Star
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
 Meritorious Service Medal (with 2 bronze oak leaf clusters)
Width-44 myrtle green ribbon with width-3 white stripes at the edges and five width-1 stripes down the center; the central white stripes are width-2 apart Army Commendation Medal
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Width-44 ribbon with two width-9 ultramarine blue stripes surrounded by two pairs of two width-4 green stripes; all these stripes are separated by width-2 white borders
 Army Achievement Medal (with 2 bronze oak leaf clusters)
U.S. unit awards
Bronze oak leaf cluster
Bronze oak leaf cluster
 Joint Meritorious Unit Award (with 1 oak leaf cluster)
U.S. service (campaign) medals and service and training ribbons
Bronze star
Bronze star
Width=44 scarlet ribbon with a central width-4 golden yellow stripe, flanked by pairs of width-1 scarlet, white, Old Glory blue, and white stripes
 National Defense Service Medal (with 2 service stars)
Bronze star
Bronze star
Bronze star
 Southwest Asia Service Medal (with 3 service stars)
Global War on Terrorism Service Medal
Humanitarian Service Medal
Width-44 ribbon with width-6 central ultramarine blue stripe, flanked by pairs of stripes that are respectively width-4 emerald, width-3 golden yellow, width-5 orange, and width-7 scarlet Army Service Ribbon
Width-44 ribbon with width-8 central brick stripe, flanked by pairs of stripes that are respectively width-2 golden yellow, width-10 grotto blue, and width-6 national flag blue
 Army Overseas Service Ribbon (with award numeral "2")
Foreign awards
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Saudi Arabia)
Kuwait Liberation Medal (Kuwait)
U.S. badges, patches and tabs
Parachutist Badge
XVIII Airborne Corps worn as his Combat Service Identification Badge
Judge Advocate General's Corps, United States Army Regiment worn as his Distinctive Unit Insignia
1 Overseas Service Bar

References

  1. ↑ Longwood Magazine (Winter 2011 ed.). Farmville, Virginia: Longwood University. 7 March 2011. p. 9. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  2. 1 2 3 "Brig. Gen. Patrick Finnegan". Richmond Times-Dispatch. 3 March 2010. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  3. 1 2 "General Patrick Finnegan, Longwood's 25th president, passes away" (Press release). Longwood University. July 4, 2018. Retrieved July 4, 2018.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Longwood Magazine (Summer 2010 ed.). Farmville, Virginia: Longwood University. 19 June 2010. pp. 11–12. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 "Company Overview of Longwood University, Executive Profile - Patrick Finnegan". Bloomberg L.P. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  6. 1 2 3 Kapsidelis, Karin (12 July 2010). "Retired West Point general takes over as Longwood's president". The News & Advance. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  7. 1 2 3 Reed, Jack. "Tribute to Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan". Jack Reed, United States Senator for Rhode Island. Retrieved 23 May 2017.
  8. ↑ "Editorial Board". Virginia Law Review. 65 (4): 1. May 1979. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  9. ↑ "Nominations Discharged and Executive Calendar". Congressional Record-Senate, Vol. 151, Pt. 11: 15244. 30 June 2005. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  10. ↑ Buncombe, Andrew (13 February 2007). "US military tells Jack Bauer: Cut out the torture scenes ... or else!". Independent. Archived from the original on 2022-05-25. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  11. 1 2 Mayer, Jane (19 February 2007). "Whatever It Takes". The New Yorker. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  12. ↑ Buddy, Mel (20 February 2007). "24 May Cut Down on Torture Series; Writers Claim it's Their Own Idea". 24. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  13. ↑ "Tribute to Brigadier General Patrick Finnegan (Remarks of Representative Jim Marshall)" (PDF). Congressional Record-Extensions of Remarks: E801. 11 May 2010. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
  14. ↑ "Past Presidents - Patrick Finnegan". Longwood University. Retrieved 8 June 2017.
  15. ↑ Staff Report (24 May 2012). "The Presidency of Gen. Patrick Finnegan; Let's All Smile Together Because It Happened". The Farmville Herald. Retrieved 24 May 2017.
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