Meet the Speaker: Ben Finley ’60

Benjamin (Ben) F. Finley ’60 was born in Harlem, New York, in 1939. After attending All Hallows High School in the South Bronx, he entered Notre Dame in 1956, one of only about 20 Black students on campus. He majored in Electrical Engineering, co-founded the secret Nu Nu Delta fraternity, and chaired Notre Dame’s Civil Rights Committee during the early years of the Civil Rights Movement, earning support from Rev. Theodore Hesburgh, C.S.C. Ben graduated in 1960 and later earned a master’s degree in Electrical Engineering from New York University.

He went on to an exciting 39-year career in the aerospace industry, largely at Hughes Aircraft, leading the development of advanced missiles and airborne weapons systems. He co-founded the Hughes Aircraft Black Professional Forum and retired in 1999.

In 1963, Ben discovered skiing and went on to found the Four Seasons West Ski Club of Los Angeles, which introduced thousands of African Americans to winter sports. In 1972, he and Art Clay co-founded the National Brotherhood of Skiers, now a nationwide organization of more than 50 clubs dedicated to supporting Black athletes. Together, Ben and Art became the first African Americans inducted into the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Hall of Fame in 2019.

Ben, along with Richard Ryans and Herman Hooten, co-founded the Black Alumni of Notre Dame which started with meeting with Fr. Hesburgh in 1985, served as its first chair, and recruited and mentored more than 150 Black students through their Notre Dame experience, including his son, Ben ’92. In 2000, he received the NDAA William D. Reynolds Award for his extraordinary contributions to youth. His son Micah graduated from Notre Dame in 2023 as a Civil Engineer.

In retirement, Ben and his wife, Andi, make their home in Marina del Rey, California, He became a sailing instructor in 2000 and subsequently became a licensed US Coast Guard Master.