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Cindy Gannon was inducted into the OVC Hall of Fame in 2022.
She served Southeast Missouri for over 30 years, including 16 seasons as head volleyball coach (1989-2004) and additional 14 years as the department’s Senior Associate Director of Athletics/Senior Woman Administrator (2005-18).
As the program’s volleyball coach, she accumulated 366 victories (the most in program history) and her teams won eight OVC regular-season titles, five OVC Tournament crowns and advanced to five NCAA Tournaments. From 1993-97 the team won five OVC regular-season titles in a row and Gannon was named OVC Coach of the Year four times (1993, 1995, 1996, 1999). She coached five OVC Players of the Year, one Freshman of the Year and 51 players who earned All-OVC honors.
Academically, SEMO garnered seven American Volleyball Coaches Association (AVCA) Academic honors under Gannon's tutelage and two athletes were named CoSIDA Academic All-Americans.
Gannon transitioned from coaching to administration in 2005 and served two stints as the Redhawks Interim Director of Athletics. In her administrator role, Gannon was the sport supervisor for the volleyball, soccer, softball, tennis, track & field and gymnastics teams in addition to overseeing event management and strategic communications. She was also responsible for the athletic department's equity and diversity programs, and departmental policies and procedures.
The idea for SEMO's Walk for Women event was initially developed by Gannon as a way to recognize the accomplishments of Redhawk female student-athletes, while helping to raise money to support athletic scholarships. Since its inception, she has helped guide this event, which has raised more than $500,000 for athletic scholarships. On April 8, 2017, SEMO Director of Athletics Brady Barke announced that in appreciation for the more than decade long commitment to the Walk for Women event and her efforts to champion women's athletics, the event would be renamed in her honor and moving forward would be known as the Cindy Gannon Walk for Women.
Gannon also founded the “Dig For Life” campaign in 2000, which today is known as “Pink Up,” a month-long fund raiser through Saint Francis Healthcare System that raises awareness and funds to provide free mammograms to the community. The event has expanded to include free screenings for the four most prevalent cancers in the region.
Gannon, who earned her bachelors and master’s degrees from SEMO, was inducted into the SEMO Athletics Hall of Fame in 2020