Pronouns: he/him/his
Immediately prior to joining the College, Finley worked at Colgate University. At Colgate, Finley was the founding director of First Generation Programs. He also served as Assistant Dean for Administrative Advising, Intergroup Dialogue Facilitator and Educator, Outreach and Programming Coordinator of the ALANA Cultural Center, Interim Advisor in the Office of LGBTQ Initiatives, and Community Leader in the Office of Residential Life. While there, he also advised the student leaders of nearly two-dozen student organizations, and served as co-instructor for two courses in the Writing and Rhetoric department – Stand and Speak Feminist Rhetoric and Discourses of Whiteness. His work at Colgate touched all constituents on-campus — students, faculty, and staff, as well as those in the surrounding community.
Education
M.S. Syracuse University, Cultural Foundations of Educ
Scholarship/Creative Work
Finley speaks and lectures regularly on topics of identity and social justice. He is the recipient of numerous awards and is an accomplished spoken word artist and musician. He earned a Bachelor of Arts in Sociology and Anthropology and Women’s Studies from Colgate University where he wrote two theses – God and Gay: LGBTQ Identity Management and the Institutional Black Church and Contemporary Black Feminist Healing. He earned a Master of Science in Education from Syracuse University, with a focus on the Cultural Foundations of Education.
- Intergroup Dialogue
- Co-chair, Trans Inclusion Committee
Dré Finley serves as our Dialogue Facilitator in the Office of Institutional Diversity Equity and Inclusion. Dré works to implement and encourage campus engagement in a variety of capacities.
As inter- and intra-group dialogue facilitator, Dré helps to advance the understandings and complexities of identity associated with race, class, gender, sexuality, spirituality, disability, and the many facets of our beings.
While engaging with students, staff, faculty and our broader community, his work in advancing trust-building dialogue and restorative practices is widely acclaimed.
As co-chair of the Trans Inclusion committee, Dré works to foster and bolster the visibility and needs of gender inclusive and expansive members of our community.