We are very lucky at South Hills HS to have a great staff to work with our students. Our staff has performed professionally all over the country and have taught some of the finest groups and ensembles in the world. Each staff member is dedicated to give our students at SHHS the very best possible experience as performers. Using the performing arts, the SHHS Band and Color Guard Staff is dedicated to teach our students how to be hard working, dedicated, and passionate young adults.
“Music has a power of forming the character, and should therefore be introduced into the education of the young.”
Aristotle
Band Director
Mr. Mike Wooten has been the Director of Bands at South Hills High School since 1999. Mike began his teaching career as a sophomore in high school teaching private trumpet lessons to middle school and elementary students. By the time Mike graduated from high school, he was teaching 30-40 private students every week. In 1997 and 1998 Mike had the opportunity to be the Director of the Tuffree Middle School Jazz Ensemble II in Placentia, CA. Throughout Mike’s time in college, he taught part-time at several middle and high schools. Mike had the privilege of attending Tuffree Middle School under the direction of Mr. Jim Hahn and El Dorado HS under the direction of Mr. Richard Watson. Because of these two individuals, Mike has developed a strong passion for Music Education. In addition to Mike’s responsibilities at South Hills HS, he is a very active member of the SCSBOA as a field and festival adjudicator.
After graduating from El Dorado HS in 1994, Mike studied music at Fullerton College for two years before transferring to Cal State University, Fullerton where he graduated in 1999. As a trumpet player, Mike has had the opportunity to perform all across the United States, Canada, Mexico, Germany, and Japan. In 1998 Wooten was selected to perform in the Disney All-American College Band and later marched five seasons as a Toy Soldier in the Christmas Fantasy Parade at Disneyland.
When not working, Mike enjoys spending time with his daughter Grace, spending time with his family, watching Sports Center, and being a fan of the Anaheim (not Los Angeles) Angels and Pittsburgh Steelers.
“Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”
Victor Hugo
Sierra Vista Music Teacher
Mr. Bobby Frey
Sierra Vista Middle School, Band Director
Bobby Frey is a music educator in Southern California. He has taught instrumental music for the last 9 years at Sierra Vista Middle School, where the bands have achieved top marks at festival competition. They have been invited to perform at regional and area competitions, as well as the California Music Educators Association conference.
Mr. Frey achieved his Bachelor’s of Music degree from California State University Long Beach and the Bob Cole Conservatory of music. He was the principal trombonist as well as the winner of the 2014 conductor mentorship, earning the opportunity to work one on one with Dr. Travis Cross, John Carnahan and Dr. Jermie Arnold. He is currently pursuing a Master’s of Music degree from American Band College.
Mr. Frey’s experience in pageantry arts spans 20 years, as a performing member of Santa Clara Vanguard, as an instructor for many high schools and drum corps, as well as being a visual designer for several groups in California. He has been working with the Phantom Regiment visual staff since 2022.
Color Guard
Andrew Arce
Color Guard Caption Head
Andrew is from southern California and entered the marching arts as a brass player. He switched his focus to color guard in 2011 and has performed 8 seasons with Fantasia Winterguard. He is a graduate of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona where he studied Public Relations and Journalism. He has been with the South Hills marching band since 2017.
Jessica Gaitan
Color Guard Staff
Jessica Gaitan is an educator in both academic and extracurricular spaces. She is an alumni of the South Hills Band and Colorguard, performing as a member of the colorguard team from 2014-2018. After pursuing a teaching credential in English and performing with independent groups, Jessica joined the South Hills Band and Colorguard staff as a instructor in 2022.
Jessica has completed several competitive seasons as a performer with Blue Devils B (2018) and Fantasia Winterguard (2020, 2022, 2023). These experiences expanded her knowledge in dance, equipment, show design, and other areas that are essential to creating an effective colorguard performance. Jessica is dedicated to creating a safe and positive learning environment where students are encouraged to challenge themselves and strive for excellence in both extracurricular and academic pursuits.
Edgard Areas
Color Guard Staff
Edgard Areas is an aspiring educator with a passion for Color Guard and Dance performance. He is a South Hills High School alumnus who graduated in 2007. Originally a trumpet player, he started playing music in middle school and continued throughout most of his time in high school. It was not until
Lea Mena
Color Guard Staff
Lea Mena has been involved in colorguard since 2022. She started in Rowland High School, where she spun for 2 years and then joined Emerald Independent Open Guard in 2024. These past seasons have strengthened her confidence in the sport of the arts and has only made her want to continue. She’s excited to spread the passion to those who are interested in color guard. Lea plans to become an elementary school teacher in the future where she’ll utilize her skills gained through experience to educate others to the best of her abilities.
Percussion
Weston Amaro
Front Ensemble Caption Head and Designer
Weston Amaro has been a Southern California based designer, composer, and educator for numerous marching bands and indoor percussion ensembles since 2005. In that time he has written and taught at every competitive level available, from junior high to independent world, and from concert to marching, in addition to wind arranging for marching band. To date
Veronica Wicks
Percussion Staff
Selena Cheng
Front Ensemble Instructor
Selina Cheng is a dedicated percussionist and educator currently instructing the front ensemble at South Hills High School. Her performance experience includes RCC Indoor Percussion (2024-2025), and she has previously instructed at Venice High School and Garden Grove High School. Complementing her commitment to music, Selina is actively pursuing studies in data science at UCLA and also works as a software developer.
Daniele LasMarias
Percussion Staff
Daniele is an alumni of South Hills High School and currently teaches the battery section of the drumline. After graduating from South Hills, he earned a degree in Civil Engineering from Cal Poly Pomona. In addition to teaching at South Hills, Daniele works as a civil engineer, balancing both a professional career and a passion for music.
Daniele first joined the South Hills drumline in high school and has remained involved in percussion ever since. Although he pursued engineering in college, Daniele continued to stay active in music, bringing a practical and focused approach to the drumline. As an educator, Daniele values teamwork, consistency, and helping students improve their skills while making the most of their time in the program. Outside of teaching and engineering, he enjoys staying engaged in the local music scene and continuing to develop as both a musician and a teacher.
Marcus Lopez
Percussion Staff
Marcus Lopez is a Percussion Educator from Los Angeles, California. After High School, Marcus attended the University of Southern California, graduating with a B.A. in Law, History and Culture. During his time at USC, he marched with the USC Trojan Marching Band (2021-2025), Meraki Percussion (2023), and Broken City Percussion (2025). He has also pursued music courses at the University level such as Intermediate Drum Set Proficiency and Afro-Latin Percussion.
Along with teaching at South Hills, Marcus teaches the drumline for the University of Southern California Trojan Marching Band.
Visual
Matthew Lackey
Visual Staff
Matt Lackey is an educator with more than 20 years of experience, dedicated to inspiring student creativity and growth through the visual and performing arts. Currently, he teaches TV and video production at Kaiser High School.
In addition to his work in the classroom, Matt Lackey serves as the Visual Caption Head at El Dorado High School and is a member of the visual staff at South Hills High School. His previous instructional roles include visual staff at Arcadia, Esperanza, and Chino Hills High Schools. He taught visual performance at Pacific Crest Drum and Bugle Corps from 2004 to 2016 and again from 2018 to 2021.
In addition to his instructional work, Matt adjudicates for the Southern California School Band and Orchestra Association (SCSBOA), lending his expertise to the evaluation and advancement of student performance during the field season. Since 2012, he has served as a board member for the six-time WGI World Champion Pulse Percussion.
Matt has worked professionally as a video producer for more than 20 years, creating content for Animal Plants Pets, St. Baldrick’s Foundation, JDRF, the Muscular Dystrophy Association (MDA), Games Done Quick, MitchFlowerPower, Pulse Percussion, and Pacific Crest Youth Arts Organization. Matt earned a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration and Master of Arts in Education from California State University, San Bernardino. He enjoys speedrunning retro video games, traveling, and spending quality time with his wife Angela and their dachshunds, Lily and Paisley.
Rudy Ruiz
Visual Staff
Rudy Ruiz is an alumni of South Hills High School and has been involved in the Southern California marching arts community for many years. He has taught visual at numerous high school programs across the region and is currently on staff with the Alta Loma and Monrovia High School marching bands.
As a performer, Rudy was a member of Pacific Crest (2008–2009) and The Cavaliers Drum & Bugle Corps (2010–2011). He went on to teach visual at Pacific Crest from 2012 to 2021, serving as Visual Caption Head from 2018 to 2021. His drum corps instructional experience also includes teaching on the visual staff of The Cavaliers (2013–2015) and Phantom Regiment (2022–2025).
Outside of the marching arts, Rudy works full-time as a video editor and camera operator in Los Angeles..
Joshua Jones
Visual Staff
Josh Jones is a marching performer currently pursuing a degree in Kinesiology. He has performed with elite ensembles including Santa Clara Vanguard 2022 and Phantom Regiment 2023–2025. Josh is also a member of Pulse Percussion’s Visual Ensemble 2024–2025. With a strong background in visual he is excited to begin his first year teaching at South Hills High School.
Additional Band Staff
Scott Director
Field Show Composer/Arranger
Scott began his career as a classical musician while still in high school performing with regional orchestras and other ensembles. He received his Bachelor of Music Education degree from the University of Miami where he studied with Clifton Williams, Frederick Fennell and Alfred Reed.
Currently, Scott resides in Los Angeles where he maintains an active composing, arranging, and teaching schedule.
His music has been performed by schools across the nation, and he has over 20 years experience as a music educator.
As a percussionist, he has played for Operas, Orchestras and Ballets, in the “pit” for Broadway Musicals, and for a variety of popular entertainers from Frank Sinatra and Liza Minnelli to opera stars Pavarotti and Domingo. In addition, Mr. Director is a member of ASCAP and has several short film scores to his credit.
Two of his composition – Glaciers, (Concert Band) and The Young Royals (Young Band) received the prestigious JW Pepper’s Editor’s choice designation.
Noe Gomez
Drill Writer
Noe Gomez is a lifelong resident of Los Angeles, California and prolific educator and designer within the marching arts. He has over seven years of performance experience, including Impulse, Santa Clara Vanguard Cadets, and half of a decade with the Santa Clara Vanguard, where he