Scot McGuire – Director of Bands
Scot McGuire is the Director of Bands at Northwestern High School. Mr. McGuire has over twenty years of experience teaching middle and high school bands in South Carolina. Bands under Mr. McGuire’s direction have consistently received the South Carolina Band Directors Association (SCBDA) Outstanding Performance Award and numerous Superior ratings at the SCBDA State Concert Performance Assessment, Jazz Performance Assessment, Solo and Ensemble Performance Assessment, and have been consistent finalists in the State Marching Championships. In Mr. McGuire’s time at Dutchman Creek, over three hundred of his students were selected to District, County, Region, and All-State Bands.
Mr. McGuire is a native of Fort Mill, SC, and was a member of the Carolina Crown Drum and Bugle Corps. Mr. McGuire received his Bachelor of Music Education from Winthrop University and his Master of Music in Conducting from the American Band College at Southern Oregon University. He is a National Board Certified Teacher. Mr. McGuire serves as Concert Performance Assessment Site Chairman for the SCBDA and Solo and Ensemble Site Chairman. His professional affiliations include the South Carolina Band Directors Association, the South Carolina Music Educators Association, the National Association for Music Education, the National Band Association, the American School Band Directors Association, and Phi Beta Mu International Bandmasters Fraternity.
Mr. McGuire is the orchestra director at First Baptist Church of Rock Hill. Mr. McGuire loves traveling in his RV with his wife Kerri (the Ph.D. in the family), his horseback-riding daughter Chloe, and his soccer-loving daughter Sophie.
Brandon Sanders – Associate Director of Bands
Mr. Sanders obtained a Bachelor of Music Education (Winthrop University), Master of Music Education (Kent State University), and a Master in School Administration (Gardner-Webb University). He is a member of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), SC Music Education Association (SCMEA), SC Band Director’s Association (SCBDA), Pi Kappa Lambda, and served on numerous school committees/councils. Mr. Sanders has aided SCBDA concert assessment committees and was a board member of several community and leadership-based chapters of honor societies and fraternities. He’s also been a teacher evaluator/mentor, department chair, and assistant principal.
Under Mr. Sanders' guidance, a surplus of students are annually seated in various honor bands and earn top ratings at the Solo & Ensemble festival. His bands have received consistent Superior concert ratings while annually earning the SCBDA “Outstanding Performance Award.” On numerous occasions, Mr. Sanders has been an honor band clinician, concert assessment consultant, and he received SCMEA’s “Outstanding Young Music Educator Award” (2016). He has created jazz ensembles, student mentoring programs, and chartered a junior Tri-M Music Honor Society that won “National Chapter of the Year” within its first year (2014).
Mr. Sanders’ career began at Chesterfield-Ruby Middle (Chesterfield, SC), where he was Teacher of the Year and a District Teacher of the Year finalist (2014). He then taught at Springfield Middle (Fort Mill, SC) and became a Teacher of the Year finalist (2017). Mr. Sanders later served as the inaugural band director at Pleasant Knoll Middle (Fort Mill, SC), earning Teacher of the Year and District Teacher of the Year (2019). He’s also been an Assistant Marching Band Director for Chesterfield, Nation Ford, and Fort Mill High Schools. Mr. Sanders assisted these programs in earning Marching Band 4A State Championships (2015, 2016) and Bands of America Regional Championships (2016, 2017). In 2023, he joined Northwestern High School as Associate Director of Bands.
Brandon is happily married to Adrienne: a remarkable wife, elementary assistant principal, and former drum major who shares his intense passion for education, community service, music, and Band.
Joshua Walker – Percussion Director
As a professional musician, Josh Walker has worked in the Carolina region for 20 years, including as percussionist with the Charlotte, Charleston, and Union Symphonies. He has performed with Andrea Bocelli, the Moody Blues, Manhattan Transfer, The Four Tops, Natalie Cole, and many other artists. Josh frequently performs on timpani, drum set, jazz vibes, marimba, and ethnic and orchestral percussion.
As a private instructor, Josh has sent students to All-Region and All-State honor bands in South and North Carolina, Interlochen Summer Arts Camp, and colleges such as University of Cincinnati, Winthrop University, Furman University, the University of South Carolina, UNC Greensboro, and North Carolina School of the Arts.
As a composer and arranger Josh has recently recorded, produced, and released an album of his jazz-influenced arrangements of classic hymns. It is entitled Reimagined: Classic Hymns for a Modern Audience. He also writes music exclusively and non-exclusively for several music libraries.
Josh studied at Winthrop University where he earned a Bachelor of Music Performance in 1998 and a Master of Music Performance in 2001.
He and his wife, Michelle, live in Fort Mill, SC with their daughter.
William Ellison – Director of Bands, DCMS
Will Ellison is a native of Easley, SC where he began his band journey as a trumpet player in the sixth grade. He graduated Summa Cum Laude from Winthrop University with his Bachelor of Music Education. While at Winthrop, Mr. Ellison was awarded the Presser Undergraduate Scholar Award and was named Outstanding Music Graduate by the music faculty. He is extremely excited to be teaching at Dutchman Creek Middle School and to continue the legacy of high-quality music education for which the school is known. Outside of DCMS, you can see Mr. Ellison assisting the Northwestern High School Marching Band: "The Purple Regiment," playing trumpet in the orchestra at First Baptist Church Rock Hill, or cheering on the Winthrop Eagles basketball team. You should also ask him about his quest to read a biography of every US President. He maintains professional affiliations with the National Association for Music Education, the South Carolina Music Educators' Association, and the South Carolina Band Directors' Association, and is a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia Fraternity.
Caitlyn Howard – Director of Bands, RRMS
Ms. Howard is not limited to the classroom; she is also a highly successful private instructor, shaping the music education experience of young musicians. Her ability to guide and inspire students outside of traditional educational settings speaks volumes for her expertise and dedication to music education.
Ms. Howard is an active member of respected organizations such as the International Horn Society and NAfME, SCMEA, and Pi Kappa Lambda. Outside of the classroom, you may see Ms. Howard performing with the Carolinas Wind Orchestra or on the field, working with Northwestern High School's esteemed marching band, The Purple Regiment.
Ryan W. Tinker – Program Consultant
Ryan W. Tinker, an NHS alumnus, serves as a program consultant and band staff member for the Northwestern band program after stepping down in 2020 as the Associate Director of Bands. Prior to his appointment at Northwestern, Mr. Tinker served as the Director of Bands at Charlotte Catholic High School from 2012 to 2014 and as an Assistant Director of Bands at York Comprehensive High School from 2010 to 2012. He received a Master of Music in Instrumental Conducting from the University of South Florida, where he served as a graduate assistant for the USF Bands. At USF, Mr. Tinker studied conducting with Dr. John C. Carmichael and Dr. William Wiedrich – and trombone performance with Mr. Tom Brantley. In the spring of 2022, he co-founded and became the co-conductor of the Catawba River Winds, a community band for York County.
Mr. Tinker received his Bachelor of Music with Emphasis in Music Education and Trombone Performance from the University of South Carolina. While at USC, he studied trombone with Dr. Brad Edwards and conducting with Dr. Rebecca Phillips, Dr. Andrew Gowan, Dr. David O'Shields, and Mr. James Copenhaver. Mr. Tinker received the Robert Van Doren Award (2008) and the Cantey Award of Excellence (2007), the two highest and most prestigious awards given by the USC School of Music to an undergraduate with outstanding musical, academic, and leadership skills.
Mr. Tinker was a Cadets Drum and Bugle Corpsmember from 2005–2008, playing euphonium and serving as horn sergeant and section leader for the corps. He is also a member of the International Trombone Association, NAFME, Pi Kappa Lambda, NBA, SCMEA, SCBDA, Phi Beta Mu, and is a South Carolina Teaching Fellow. He received an honorary membership into Kappa Kappa Psi in recognition of his outstanding contributions and dedication to the University of South Florida bands. In addition to serving at Northwestern HS as a band consultant and auditorium manager, Mr. Tinker now works as an IT professional in the private sector. Mr. Tinker lives in Rock Hill, SC with his wife Katie, a math teacher at Northwestern High School, and their son, Callan.