Join us for an Academic Retreat led by Dr. John Finley on “Thomas Aquinas and The Contemporary Age.”

About the Leader

Dr. John Finley currently serves as Tutor at Thomas Aquinas College. Dr. Finley has also served as Professor of Philosophy at Kenrick-Glennon Seminary in St. Louis and was the Academic Director of the Valor Institute from 2022-2023.

He has authored several publications on philosophical anthropology, metaphysics, phenomenology, and Ancient and Medieval philosophy and is a member of the Aquinas Institute of Blackfriars Hall at the University of Oxford. Dr. Finley received his masters and doctorate in philosophy from the University of Dallas and his Bachelor of Arts from Thomas Aquinas College. In 2016 he was awarded a grant from the John Templeton Foundation to pursue collaborative research on the human person from the standpoints of science, medicine, philosophy, and theology, which culminated in Sexual Identity, published by Emmaus Road.

Important Details

Travel: participants are expected to pay for their own travel to and from the retreat. We recommend flying into Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and arriving at the Kingfisher Center at least an hour before the event begins.

Cost: The standard fee for each academic retreat is $1,200, which includes lodging, meals, and texts.

Scholarships: Full scholarships are available for undergraduate and graduate students, teachers, and professors. Please indicate your desire for a scholarship on the application. We do not want cost to be a barrier for anyone desiring to participate in one of our retreats.

Academic Retreats are offered free of charge to Valor Education faculty and staff.

Sponsorship: The Valor Institute is looking for partners to join us in expanding our retreat offerings. Please contact Joel VanDerworp if you are interested in sponsoring our programs.