'Cheering for the Coyotes My Whole Life:' Nancy McCahren to Serve as Dakota Days Parade Marshal
McCahren grew up cheering for the Coyotes as her father, Carl B. “Rube” Hoy, coached the USD basketball and track teams and later served as athletic director.
“I’ve been cheering for the Coyotes my whole life. I’ve been part of USD since I was a child,” McCahren said. “The university has been my home and my life.”
McCahren earned three degrees at USD: a bachelor’s degree in English, a master’s in French and an Ed.D. in education administration.
She went on to serve in USD’s Department of English from 1962-1965 and again from 1966-1987. McCahren also worked in the Office of Student Life from 1968-1984 and the Department of Modern Languages from 1982-1990. In 1990, she went on to the USD Alumni Association and served as executive director until she retired in 2004.
McCahren was the first woman to serve on the USD Athletic Board of Control and was the first female to chair that board. She was an advocate for the North Central Conference (NCC) and received the NCC Honor Award in recognition of her efforts to heighten the integrity of the conference.
McCahren met her husband, Lee Michael McCahren ’57, ’62, ’65, at USD. Their children, Lee Christopher McCahren ’83, ’86 and Julie McCahren ’89, ’00, also attended the university.
McCahren and her family established the Hoy Award many years ago, which recognizes an outstanding senior male and female student-athlete each year. The family also funds a scholarship for a student-athlete from a South Dakota high school.
McCahren was inducted into the Coyote Sports Hall of Fame in 2015.
“The legacy of USD has been the real involvement, love and commitment from the people who have been here – from the very first president to the current president, from the very first student to the ones who are here now,” McCahren said. “It’s the people.”
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