William Asa Finley (1839–1912) was an American academic and the first president of Corvallis College, known today as Oregon State University.
Thereafter, he received the honorary Doctor of Divinity from Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina in 1871.
[1] In 1865, Finley became the first president of Corvallis College by the appointment of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.
His presidency there lasted until he resigned in June 1872 because of the health problems of his wife, Sarah Elizabeth Latimer.
Finley's contribution to Oregon State University was significant in that during his presidency, Corvallis College reached the status of an independent institution of higher education.