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Kevin Gannon is a faculty member and administrator at Grand View University. He is a history professor that is passionate about education. He said he enjoys being a part of the traffic of students that need help in with school and he likes to be involved on campus.

Gannon is called the tattooed professor around Grand View, and his social media accounts are @tattooedprof.

Gannon said there are not many professors with as many tattoos as he has which makes him stand out. He wants to make a difference in people’s lives and interact with people not only at Grand View, but also around the world.

Social media allows opportunities for professors, such as Gannon, to give his input. “Social media has been a very powerful platform. Allowing me the ability to be a part of national conversations, meeting people and collaborating,” said Gannon.

Gannon’s blog, The Tattooed Professor, talks about racial topics along with the prison crises in the United States. His blog caught the eye of a director, Ava DuVernay. She is the first African American director to have an Oscar nomination.

DuVernay came across his blog and asked him if he would be willing to be interviewed for a documentary she was working on. Her documentary, The 13^th explores the history of those situations. In the film Gannon added his input on the incarceration and racial problems he’s witnessed and studied.

“Before I knew it, I was in a studio in the Bronx getting interviewed by the director with seven other people such as Cory Booker, (United Sates senator), Michael Alexander, (author), Angela Davis, (political activist), and Bryan Stevenson, (founder of the equal justice initiative),” said Gannon.

Gannon said he feels the film is important because it can make an impact and help people get passionate about an issue that inspires them. A tattooed professor, social media enthuses and an expert in racial and incarceration problems makes Gannon an unique professor at Grand View.