Chester Evans Finn Jr. (born August 3, 1944) is a former professor of education, an educational policy analyst, and a former United States Assistant Secretary of Education. He is currently the president emeritus of the nonprofit Thomas B. Fordham Foundation in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

He is also a Fellow of the International Academy of Education, an Adjunct Fellow at the

Hudson Institute The Hudson Institute is a conservative American think tank based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1961 in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, by futurist, military strategist, and systems theorist Herman Kahn and his colleagues at the RAND Corporat ...

, and a senior fellow at

Stanford University Stanford University, officially Leland Stanford Junior University, is a private research university in Stanford, California. The campus occupies , among the largest in the United States, and enrolls over 17,000 students. Stanford is consider ...

Hoover Institution The Hoover Institution (officially The Hoover Institution on War, Revolution, and Peace; abbreviated as Hoover) is an American public policy think tank and research institution that promotes personal and economic liberty, free enterprise, and ...

where he chairs the Koret Task Force on K-12 Education. He was also a member of the Maryland Kirwan Commission on Education during its authorization period from 2016 to 2019. Finn was Professor of Education and Public Policy at

Vanderbilt University Vanderbilt University (informally Vandy or VU) is a private research university in Nashville, Tennessee. Founded in 1873, it was named in honor of shipping and rail magnate Cornelius Vanderbilt, who provided the school its initial $1-million ...

(1981–2002). He served as Assistant Secretary for Research and Improvement at the

U.S. Department of Education The United States Department of Education is a Cabinet-level department of the United States government. It began operating on May 4, 1980, having been created after the Department of Health, Education, and Welfare was split into the Department ...

(1985–88). Prior positions included Staff Assistant to U.S. President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

; special assistant to Massachusetts Governor

Francis Sargent Francis Williams Sargent (July 29, 1915 – October 22, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 64th governor of Massachusetts from 1969 to 1975. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as the 63rd Lieutenant Govern ...

(1972–73); counsel to U.S. Ambassador to India

Daniel Patrick Moynihan Daniel Patrick Moynihan (March 16, 1927 – March 26, 2003) was an American politician, diplomat and sociologist. A member of the Democratic Party, he represented New York in the United States Senate from 1977 until 2001 and served as an ...

(1973–74); Research Associate at the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in ec ...

(1974–77); and legislative director for U.S. Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan (1977–81).

Memberships

* American Educational Research Association *

Committee for the Free World The Committee for the Free World was a neoconservative anti-Communist think tank in the United States.John Ehrman, ''The Rise of Neoconservatism: Intellectuals and Foreign Affairs, 1945-1994'', Yale University Press, 1996, pp. 139-14/ref> Overview ...

* Phi Delta Kappa

Published works

*''How to Educate an American: The Conservative Vision for Tomorrow's Schools''; Michael J. Petrilli and Chester E. Finn Jr., eds. (2020). West Conshohocken, PA: Templeton Press. . * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *''We Must Take Charge!: Our Schools and Our Future'' (1991) *''The Educated Child: A Parents Guide From Preschool Through Eighth Grade'' (1999; with

William Bennett William John Bennett (born July 31, 1943) is an American conservative politician and political commentator who served as secretary of education from 1985 to 1988 under President Ronald Reagan. He also held the post of director of the Office of ...

and John T. E. Cribb Jr.) *''Charter Schools in Action: Renewing Public Education'' (2001; with Bruno V. Manno and Gregg Vanourek) *''Leaving No Child Behind?: Options for Kids in Failing Schools'' (2004) (with Frederick M. Hess) *''Troublemaker: A Personal History of School Reform Since Sputnik'' (2008)

References

External links

Thomas B. Fordham Foundation websiteHudson Institute > About Hudson > Chester Finn
Hudson Institute biography *
MediaTransparency Profile of Chester FinnReview of Chester Finn's Autobiography, Troublemaker: A Personal History of School Reform Since Sputnik
{{DEFAULTSORT:Finn, Chester E. Jr. 1944 births Living people Phillips Exeter Academy alumni People from Columbus, Ohio Reagan administration personnel Vanderbilt University faculty National Association of Scholars Harvard Graduate School of Education alumni