Mr. Butler is the Director of Bands at Catawba Ridge High School in Fort Mill, South Carolina. Now in his 28th year as a music educator and 6th year at Catawba Ridge, he leads a nationally recognized band program known for excellence in marching, concert, and indoor ensembles.

Under his leadership, the Catawba Ridge Band has earned multiple South Carolina State Championships, Bands of America regional and class championships, and national recognition at BOA Grand Nationals and WGI events. The program has also performed at major events including the London New Year’s Day Parade and Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade.

Mr. Butler is dedicated to creating meaningful musical experiences, developing student leaders, and building a culture of excellence, pride, and teamwork. He is a resident of Waxhaw, North Carolina, where he lives with his wife, Kourtney, and their dogs, Oso, Max, and Willow, and cats, Samantha and Cordelia.

A graduate of Virginia Commonwealth University, Mr. Mitchell brings a wealth of experience and passion to our program. He has been an integral part of the Catawba Ridge Band as our visual caption head and designer, and has served as Director of Bands at Banks Trail Middle School since 2021. He also currently works as the visual caption head for Carolina Crown Drum Corps.

Already a familiar and inspiring presence for our students, we are excited to welcome Mr. Mitchell to the high school full time and look forward to the continued growth of our program under his leadership!

As the band director at Community House, his bands earned consistent superior ratings at local and regional band competitions. In 2017, the Community House Middle School 8^th grade band was awarded the Charlotte Musical Showcase Award of Excellence for most outstanding middle school musical ensemble in Charlotte. 

Before assuming his current position at Catawba Ridge High School, Mr. Smith held influential roles as the Director of Bands at East Lincoln Middle School and as Assistant Director of Bands & Percussion Director at East Lincoln High School in Denver, NC. Notably, Mr. Smith’s tenure as the Percussion Director at ELHS saw the percussion ensemble achieve remarkable success. Under his guidance, they secured a WGI bronze medal in the Percussion Scholastic Concert Open Class in 2019, marking a milestone in the school district’s history.

Continuing his dedication at Catawba Ridge High School, Mr. Smith has driven the percussion ensemble to unparalleled achievements and growth. Their accomplishments include captivating performances at the South Carolina Music Educators Association Professional Development Conference and garnering prestigious Percussion Scholastic Concert World Bronze, Silver, and Gold medals at the 2022, 2023, & 2024 WGI World Championships. Notably, they have also held the title of Carolina Winter Ensemble Association PSCW Champions for three consecutive years.

Mr. Smith is a native of Denver, NC and earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Music Education at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee, North Carolina. He is an active member of professional organizations such as the Percussion Arts Society, National Association for Music Education, Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, and is an Innovative Percussion artist. He currently represents Catawba Ridge on the Percussion Advisory Councils for Winterguard International (WGI) and the Carolina Winter Ensemble Association (CWEA).

Matthew McCurley has been teaching, designing, and performing in the pageantry arts since 2005.  He received his music education degree from Winthrop University in 2008, and has been teaching elementary music since.  He currently teaches at Springfield Elementary in Fort Mill, SC.  Matt currently writes drill, design and provides choreography for multiple groups in NC, SC, VA, and TX.  The groups he has worked with have received accolades both locally and nationally including state finals appearances and a Virginia State Class Champion in 2017.  Matt strives to provide exciting and accessible programs for the groups he works with. 

From 2010-2016 Matt was the lead choreographer for Aria Winter guard from Greensboro, NC.  Over the 7 years with Aria they were WGI Regional Champions multiple times in A Class as well as 2 time national semi-finalists and 2 time national finalists.  After moving to open class in 2014 they were semi-finalists in 2014 and finalists in 2015. 

Matt was the guard director at Fort Mill High School from 2014-2019.  During his time there the band won a state championship, two BOA Regional Championships, and had two visits to BOA Grand National Semi-Finals.  The winter guard was named the CWEA National A Class Champion in 2017, the WGI Knoxville Regional Champion and a WGI SA Finalist in 2018, and a WGI SA Semi-Finalist in 2019. 

Currently, Matt is on the design team for Opus Winterguard, a two time A class finalist and Open class finalist in 2026.

Matt currently lives in Fort Mill, SC with his husband James and their cat Ovie. 

Jordan Laird is currently the Director of Bands at Forest Creek Middle School in Fort Mill. Prior to teaching at FCMS, Ms. Laird taught at Greer Middle School in Greenville, SC. During her time at Greer Middle School, the bands received Superior ratings at the Carowinds Music Festival, Trills and Thrills Festival, Solo & Ensemble performances, and the Honor Band received Superior with distinction ratings at the SCBDA Concert Performance Assessment. The band received the Outstanding Performance Award for the first time in Greer Middle School history during the 2017-2018 school year and again in the 2018-2019 school year. She was awarded “Emerging Teacher of the Year” during the 2018-2019 school year. 

Ms. Laird received her Bachelor’s degree from the University of South Carolina in Music Education with a performance certificate in Clarinet. She recently completed her Master of Music Education from Florida State University. Her professional affiliations include South Carolina Band Directors Association, the National Association for Music Education (NAfME), and a life member of Kappa Kappa Psi, National Honorary Band Service Fraternity. 

Lauren Ogle serves as the Assistant Percussion Director at Catawba Ridge High School and Band Director at Forest Creek Middle School. With nine years of experience teaching percussion and two years as a band director, Lauren is passionate about developing musicians while helping students grow into confident, capable young adults.

Lauren earned a degree in Music Education from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. Their teaching career began with percussion instruction at East Lincoln High School during the 2018-2019 school year. They joined the Catawba Ridge High School band staff as a front ensemble technician in 2020 and served in that role through 2022. In 2023, Lauren became the Front Ensemble Coordinator, and in 2026, they advanced to their current role as Assistant Percussion Director.

During their time with the Catawba Ridge program, the marching band has earned four state championships and two Bands of America regional championships, as well as a 19th-place finish at the Bands of America Grand National Championships. The percussion program has also experienced significant competitive success, earning medals in Concert Scholastic World Class from 2021–2023 and winning the class in 2023. The indoor marching percussion program achieved a Top 10 finish in its inaugural season.

Beyond competitive accomplishments, Lauren is proud of the steady growth of the percussion program in both size and ability. Most importantly, they value the lessons that extend beyond music.

Lauren takes great pride in the real-life skills students develop through their experiences in band and in watching them grow into thoughtful, confident young adults.

Outside of the band room, Lauren enjoys spending time with friends and family, traveling, and being outside. She currently lives in Fort Mill, SC with her wife Marcia and their two cats, Boo and Tallulah.