Kevin Still
Director of Bands at Willow Spring High School in Fuquay-Varina, NC
Education: Bachelor of Music in Music Education, UNC Charlotte (2012)
Master of Music Education, Texas Tech University, (2018)
Certification, National Board for Professional Teaching Standards (2023)
Hometown: Raleigh, NC
Kevin Still was introduced to music when his parents enrolled him and his siblings (his brother Ben is also an alumnus of the Department of Music) in Kindermusik classes at an early age and then piano lessons starting at age six. Kevin took piano lessons all through elementary and middle school, and he also played in school bands throughout middle and high school. During this time, he decided teaching and performing music was the career path he wanted.
Currently, Kevin serves as the Director of Bands at Willow Spring High School in Fuquay-Varina, North Carolina, where he had the opportunity to start the band program at Willow Spring in 2021. His teaching responsibilities include three concert bands, the “Sound of the Storm” Marching Band, jazz bands, pit orchestras and overseeing the full band program which includes winterguards, indoor percussion and chamber music. He is a nationally board certified educator.
“Opening a new high school was a career dream and definitely a fun and challenging project,” he says.
Kevin says he loved his time at Charlotte as a music major. “I often felt like I was in a Harry Potter movie… attending classes with unique and amazing professors creating ‘magic’ through studying, practicing and performing music. The faculty at Charlotte pushed me to be a good musician, a critical thinker and a problem solver, qualities that serve me well in public school band directing. I learned to value practicing and the process of learning music. Charlotte offered many opportunities to perform and interact with amazing professionals and artists.”
One of his favorite memories from his time at UNC Charlotte was the Wind Ensemble’s performance at the North Carolina Music Educators Association In-Service Conference in 2010. “We performed one of my all time favorite band transcriptions, ‘Festive Overture’ by Dmitri Shostakovich.”
His advice for current students: “Be involved and embrace your time as an undergraduate. Don’t be in a hurry to get out. The community of artists, creators and performers in the College is unique and not easily found elsewhere. Take the time to know your professors and learn from them. The best professors and students I interacted with were the ones who taught me how to ask questions and then pushed me to find the answer. Hang out with those people.”