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Patrick Finnegan
USMA Dean.jpg
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 by Dr. Patricia Picard Cormier
Succeeded by W. Taylor Reveley IV
12th Dean of United States Military Academy
In office
July 1, 2005 – June 30, 2010
Succeeded by Timothy Trainor
Personal details
Born (1949-09-20)September 20, 1949
Fukuoka, Japan
Died July 2, 2018(2018-07-02) (aged 68)
Cause of death Heart attack
Spouse Joan
Education U.S. Military Academy (BS)
Harvard University (MPA)
University of Virginia (JD)
Military service
Allegiance  United States
Branch/service  United States Army
Years of service 1971–2010
Rank US-O7 insignia.svg Brigadier General
Commands Dean of Academic Board,
U.S. Military Academy
Awards Army 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) was a United States Army Brigadier General. He also served as the president of Longwood University. General Finnegan spent 39 years in the U.S. Army. He retired in 2010 after being the 12th Dean of the Academic Board at the U.S. Military Academy. After his Army career, he became the 25th President of Longwood University in 2010. He stepped down in 2012 due to health reasons.

Early Life and Education

Patrick Finnegan was born in Fukuoka, Japan, in 1949. His father was also in the military. Because of this, Patrick moved around the world a lot as a child. He graduated from Cardinal Gibbons School in Baltimore, Maryland, in 1967.

After high school, he went to the U.S. Military Academy in West Point, New York. While he was a student there, he led the Honor Committee. He was also the manager of the Army Black Knights football team. Finnegan finished West Point in 1971. He then became an officer in the U.S. Army.

Military Career Highlights

General Finnegan had an amazing career in the Army. He served for over 39 years. He worked as an infantry officer, an intelligence officer, and an Army lawyer. The Army lawyers are part of the Judge Advocate General's Corps (JAG).

After West Point, Finnegan studied at Harvard University. He earned a Master of Public Administration degree in 1973. He also went to Airborne School. His first Army job was at Fort Lewis in Washington.

Finnegan later became an Army lawyer. He studied law at the University of Virginia School of Law. He graduated with a law degree in 1979. He then worked as a military lawyer in Germany. He also taught criminal law at the Army's legal school.

During the Gulf War, Finnegan helped advise military leaders. He worked with the XVIII Airborne Corps and Joint Special Operations Command. He also advised the United States Special Operations Command (SOCOM). Later, he was the main legal advisor for the United States European Command in Germany.

In 1998, Finnegan returned to West Point. He became the Staff Judge Advocate there. He also taught law as a professor. In 2005, he became a Brigadier General. He was chosen to be the 12th Dean of the Academic Board at West Point. This meant he was in charge of all the teaching and learning at the academy.

While Dean, Finnegan visited Hollywood. He talked to the producers of the TV show 24. He was worried that showing torture on TV could make people think it was okay. He asked them to limit how much torture was shown. During his time as Dean, West Point received many awards. It was named a top public college by Forbes magazine. Finnegan retired from the Army in 2010.

Leading Longwood University

In 2010, Longwood University chose Finnegan as its 25th President. As President, he started many new projects. He helped create a plan for academics across the campus. He also helped Longwood University join the NCAA Division I Big South Conference for sports. He also created an office to help get funding for teacher research projects. In 2012, Finnegan announced he would step down. He left his role as President for health reasons.

Death

Patrick Finnegan passed away in July 2018. He died from a heart attack.

Awards and Decorations

U.S. Military Awards
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 Medals
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
Award numeral 2.png
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 and Patches
US Army Airborne basic parachutist badge.gif Parachutist Badge
XVIII Airborne Corps CSIB.svg XVIII Airborne Corps worn as his Combat Service Identification Badge
JAGcrest.gif Judge Advocate General's Corps, United States Army Regiment worn as his Distinctive Unit Insignia
ASU overseas service bar.jpg 1 Overseas Service Bar
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