Lou Fincher
Dr. A. Louise Fincher joined Emory & Henry College as the Founding Dean of the School of Health Sciences in June 2014. Since arriving at E&H, Dr. Fincher has overseen the development of the School’s four graduate health science programs and the renovation of the former Smyth County Community Hospital to become the home of the growing School of Health Sciences. In 2020, she was named Senior Vice President at E&H and continues to serve as the Dean of the School of Health Sciences.
Dr. Fincher has 38 years of teaching and health care experience and over 25 years of administrative and leadership experience. Her previous administrative positions prior to Emory & Henry have included Chair of the Department of Kinesiology at The University of Texas at Arlington (2009-2014), Founding Program Director for UT Arlington’s CAATE accredited Athletic Training Education Program (2000-2009), and President and CEO of the Joe. W. King Orthopedic Institute at the Texas Orthopedic Hospital in Houston, Texas (1998-2000).
Dr. Fincher currently serves as an accreditation site visitor for the Commission on Accreditation of Athletic Training Education (CAATE).
Education
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The University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, AL
Doctor of Education, Human Performance Studies, 1995 -
Indiana State University, Terre Haute, IN
M.S.Ed., Athletic Training, 1991 -
Stephen F. Austin State University, Nacogdoches, TX
B.S., Education with an Emphasis in Athletic Training, 1983
Research
Dr. Fincher has published over 20 articles and 10 research abstracts in peer-reviewed journals, as well as delivered over 40 national and regional professional presentations. She has also co-authored a textbook entitled, Clinical Pathology for Athletic Trainers: Recognizing Systemic Disease (SLACK, Inc.).
Professional Experience
Dr. Fincher is a Board Certified Athletic Trainer with clinical experience across multiple settings, including high school, college, and orthopedic outpatient rehabilitation. She is very active in professional service, particularly in the area of health professions education. As a member of the National Athletic Trainers’ Association’s (NATA) Clinical Education Committee, she helped to develop and deliver the initial Clinical Instructor Educator (CIE) workshops. These professional development workshops were designed to assist athletic training program directors and clinical education coordinators in preparing clinicians to be effective clinical preceptors.
As the Chair for the NATA Professional Education Committee, she coordinated the development of the 5th edition of the Athletic Training Education Competencies, which established the knowledge, skills and abilities that CAATE accredited athletic training education programs must include in their academic programs. More recently, Dr. Fincher has served as a member of the CAATE Steering Committee responsible for developing the new Professional Knowledge Standards, which replaced the 5th edition of the competencies.
In 2016, Dr. Fincher was recognized by the NATA as a recipient of the Sayers “Bud” Miller Distinguished Educator Award. She was also honored by the NATA in 2014 with the Gail Weldon Award of Excellence and in 2008 with the Most Distinguished Athletic Trainer Award. In 2011, Dr. Fincher was inducted into the Southwest Athletic Trainers’ Association (SWATA) Athletic Training Hall of Fame.
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