The Gatton Academy's Staff

Finn Shirley is the Residential Counselor for 3rd South. Originally from Nashville, Tennessee, he graduated from East Tennessee State University in the Spring of 2025 with a BA in Political Science, a BA in Philosophy, and minors in Changemaking and Legal Studies.

Finn is no stranger to working with gifted students. He spent three summers employed by WKU’s Center for Gifted Studies, working with the Summer Camp for Academically Talented Middle School Students and the Verbally and Mathematically Precocious Youth summer camps. Finn served as the Teaching Assistant for VAMPY’s Presidential Politics class in the summer of 2022. During the summers of 2024 and 2025, he returned to the Hill as a Residential Camp Counselor for VAMPY and SCATS. 

Outside of work, he enjoys spending time at church, working out, being outdoors, playing board games, and going to the movies. Finn loves to travel and try new things with friends. He looks forward to learning more about himself and the world as he facilitates the students’ journeys of self-discovery.