Coaches

Anna Cunningham

Co-Head Coach

Anna Cunningham serves as co-head coach of the Jefferson High School cross-country program for the 2025 season alongside Coach Molly McCarty, while Coach Lees is deployed. A 2013 graduate of Jefferson High School, Cunningham is deeply rooted in the community and passionate about Dragon athletics.

She is entering her ninth year as a teacher at Jefferson Middle School and her 11th year coaching within Jefferson City Schools. Her coaching experience includes two years with varsity slow-pitch softball, eight years with middle school softball, six years with both middle school and varsity golf, and she is entering her second year with the Jefferson Middle School track and field program.

Cunningham is married to Coleman, an assistant football coach at Jefferson High School. She takes great pride in helping shape student-athletes both on and off the field.

Molly McCarty

Co-Head Coach

Coach Molly McCarty brings more than two decades of coaching experience and a lifelong passion for running to the Jefferson High School cross-country program. Originally from Athens, Georgia, McCarty serves as co-head coach and is committed to fostering a culture of discipline, perseverance and team unity. She also leads the Jefferson High School girls soccer program as head coach.

McCarty’s love for distance running was inspired by her father, a former track and field athlete and longtime coach, whose influence instilled in her a deep respect for endurance sports. That legacy now continues through her work with student-athletes at Jefferson.

Known for her supportive leadership and focus on character development, McCarty helps athletes grow both competitively and personally. Her goal is not only to develop strong runners but to shape confident young men and women who excel beyond the course.

She and her husband, Wayne McCarty, an assistant football coach at Jefferson, are both deeply invested in the school’s athletic programs. They have two daughters: Lanie, 21, and Maryn, 16.