B.S. Music Ed. Texas A&M University-Commerce

M.Ed. The University of Texas at Arlington 

Lara Whitehouse is entering her seventeenth year of teaching and her fourth year as Director of Bands at Cross Timbers Middle School.  At Cross Timbers Middle School, Mrs. Whitehouse conducts the Honors Band, assists with the Symphonic Band, and teaches beginner trumpet, French horn, trombone, euphonium, and tuba classes.

Prior to joining GCISD and Cross Timbers Middle School, Mrs. Whitehouse served as a band director in Irving ISD, Duncanville ISD, and spent the majority of her career teaching in Highland Park ISD at Highland Park Middle School and McCulloch Intermediate School. During her time in Highland Park, the HPMS bands earned consistent first divisions ratings at UIL Concert and Sight-Reading Contests and were named a Commended Winner in the Mark of Excellence National Wind Band Contest. The bands also received unanimous superior ratings at a variety of festivals and contests. In addition to teaching at MIS/HPMS, she also assisted with the Highland Park High School “Highlander” Marching Band. Mrs. Whitehouse was a recipient of the “Heart at Work Award” in HPISD for the 2019-2020 school year. Before joining the HPISD band staff, she served on the band staff at Richardson High School.

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Mrs. Whitehouse holds a Master’s Degree in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies from the University of Texas at Arlington, and a Bachelor of Science in Music Education from Texas A&M University-Commerce.

Mrs. Whitehouse has served on the Texas Music Educators Association State Board as the Region 20 Secretary and currently serves as the TMEA Region 31 Secretary. Her professional affiliations include the Texas Music Educators Association, Texas Bandmasters Association, and Texas Music Adjudicators Association.

B.M. Music Ed. University of North Texas

Sylvia Nalbandian is entering her second year of teaching at Cross Timbers Middle School. She graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of North Texas with a degree in Music Education. Ms. Nalbandian conducts the Symphonic and Concert Bands, assists with the Honors Band, and teaches beginner flute, clarinet, saxophone, and double reeds classes.

During her time at UNT, she had the opportunity to study clarinet under Professor Deborah Fabian for four years. Her performing ensembles include in the Wind Ensemble under Dr. Daniel Cook, the Wind Orchestra under Dr. Andrew Trachsel, and the Green Brigade, where she served as drum major for two years. In her last semester, she had the privilege of student teaching at Heritage Middle School and Colleyville Heritage High school, and is thrilled to continue being in GCISD!

Ms. Nalbandian taught clarinet private lessons and was a marching band technician for Byron Nelson and Lewisville High School. Ms. Nalbandian was the recipient of the TMEA Student Teaching Scholarship as well as the National Association of Music Education (NAfME) Future Music Educator Award. Her professional affiliations include the Texas Music Educators Association and Texas Bandmasters Association.

In her free time, Ms. Nalbandian enjoys reading, baking, and spending time with her pets, friends, and family.

Caleb Hinz is the percussion director for the Grapevine High School band cluster, including Cross Timbers and Grapevine Middle Schools.

Mr. Hinz was born and raised in Texas, where he graduated Cum Laude with a Bachelor’s degree in Music Performance from the University of North Texas. During his time at UNT, Mr. Hinz was able to study with many great percussionists, such as Sandi Rennick, Mark Ford, Stephen Barnes, and the late Christopher Deane. Mr. Hinz has performed with a number of highly regarded collegiate and professional groups such as the UNT Wind Orchestra, the Dallas Metropolitan Winds, The Dallas Brass Band, and the UNT Percussion Ensemble.

As an educator, Mr. Hinz has worked with multiple school districts in the DFW area, including Mesquite ISD, Irving ISD, Keller ISD, and Frisco ISD. Prior to this position, Mr. Hinz served as the assistant percussion director for Walnut Grove High School in Prosper ISD.

Mr. Hinz and his wife, Kaylee, reside in Roanoke, Texas, with their two children, Hudson and Charlotte. 

Katie Jobe is an active percussionist and educator in Fort Worth, TX. She received her Masters of Percussion Performance from Texas Christian University in 2023, and her Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Texas at Arlington in 2021. At TCU, she served as a graduate assistant for the percussion studio and was a part of their performance at the Percussive Arts Society International Convention in 2022. As a performer, Katie was a member of the front ensemble for Guardians Drum and Bugle Corps in 2016 and 2017, and Fort Worth-based Vigilantes Indoor Percussion in 2017 and 2018. She was a member of the Maverick Marching Band at UTA for four years, and performed in the bands, orchestras, and percussion ensembles of both UTA and TCU.

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As an educator, Katie has worked with multiple schools in the DFW area, including Azle High School, Southwest High School in Fort Worth, and Coppell High School, where she student taught. Her most recent position prior to Grapevine was as the Assistant Percussion Director at Fossil Ridge High School in Keller ISD. There, she helped with teaching percussion classes, and served as the private lesson teacher for percussion students in the cluster. Prior to Fossil Ridge, she was on the front ensemble staff for Centennial High School in Burleson and served as a private lesson teacher for their feeder campus Kerr Middle School. On top of her experience with high school front ensembles, Katie also has experience teaching at the drum corps level. In 2022 she was a member of the front ensemble staff for Guardians, and in 2023 was part of the staff for Spirit of Atlanta.

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Katie is excited for her second year on the Grapevine Band staff and is looking forward to a great year!