Staff Bios

CLIFTON THURMOND, DIRECTOR OF BANDS

Clifton D. Thurmond has been teaching in the Lee’s Summit R7 School District since the beginning of his career in 1999.  Before Lee’s Summit West opened, Mr. Thurmond spent the first five years of his career as the Associate Director of Bands at Lee’s Summit High School.  Mr. Thurmond also teaches 5th and 6th grade band at Summit Pointe Elementary and Cedar Creek Elementary.  In addition to his teaching job, he is also the Worship Leader at Deerbrook Covenant Church in Lee’s Summit.

Mr. Thurmond earned a Bachelor of Music Education from the University of Colorado, Boulder in 1998 and completed his Master of Arts at the University of Missouri, Kansas City in 2007. Mr. Thurmond is a tuba player but was wise enough to marry a better one. He and his wife, Angie, live in Lee’s Summit with their two children, Emory and Miles.

BRANDON JOHNSON, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF BANDS

Brandon Johnson is a band director and percussion specialist for Lee’s Summit West High School. He works with the Titan Pride Drumline and directs both the Lee’s Summit West Percussion Ensemble and The Symphonic Band. Before his career in Lee’s Summit, Mr. Johnson spent 12 years in the Independence School District at Truman High School, where he had very similar responsibilities. While in Kansas City, he has been an active teacher, percussion writer/arranger, adjudicator, and performer.

Mr. Johnson has served as the KC Metro Middle School Vice President, percussion coordinator for MCCGA, Board member for NorthWinds Symphonic Band, and he is a founding member of The Kansas City Chiefs Rumble Drumline. Brandon is married to Rachel Johnson, a 6th grade teacher at Hawthorn Hill Elementary.

STEPHANIE HILL, DIRECTOR OF ORCHESTRAS

Stephanie Hill is the Director of Orchestras at Lee’s Summit West High School in the Lee’s Summit School District in Kansas City, Missouri. Before coming to Lee’s Summit West, she taught in the Park Hill School District for 16 years as the Director of Orchestras at Park Hill High School and Congress Middle School. She also previously taught in the Independence School District at Truman High School and associated middle schools. She has served as the Orchestra Vice President of the Missouri Music Educators Association and Secretary/Treasurer for the Missouri Chapter of the American String Teachers Association. The Orchestra Vice-President of the Kansas City Metro District No. 3. Mrs. Hill graduated from William Jewell College with a Bachelor of Science degree in Music Education and Violin Performance and holds a Master’s Degree in Music Education from the University of Missouri-Kansas City Conservatory of Music. She is a freelance violinist and private violin instructor in the Kansas City Metro Area and serves as Co-Concert Master for the Liberty Symphony Orchestra. Her husband, Joseph Hill, is the Director of Bands at Raytown High School, and they have two teenage children who are both involved in music in the North Kansas City School District.

JACOB LOWRY, DIRECTOR OF CHOIRS

Jacob Lowry has taught in the Lee’s Summit R7 district since 2014 and is in his 14th year. He served as the KC Metro District choir coordinator outside the Lee’s Summit West Choral Program. Previously, he was the 9/10 Honor Choir coordinator, the MCDA Tenor-Bass Resource & Repertoire chair, and the head chaperone for the Missouri All-State Choir. He also serves as the director of Music at First Presbyterian Church in Lee’s Summit.

Mr. Lowry co-directed the Lee’s Summit West Chamber Choir at the ACDA National Convention to present a live demonstration of Dr. Archibeque’s session, “Reposition Your Choir, Refine Your Sound!” based on the DVD by GIA Publications “How to Make a Good Choir Sound Great.” His previous positions include Director of Music at Country Club United Methodist Church, Director of Choirs at Liberty Memorial Central Middle School (6-8) in Lawrence, KS, and Assistant Choral Director at Lee’s Summit High School (9-12).

Mr. Lowry received his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music in Choral Conducting at Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX, under the instruction of Dr. Allen Hightower and Dr. James Franklin. Jacob and his wife, Dr. Laura Lowry, his son Caleb, and his daughter Adalyn live in Lee’s Summit and share a love for music and teaching.

LONDON ROYSDEN, ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR OF CHOIRS

London Roysden began teaching choir at Lee’s Summit West HS and Summit Lakes MS in
2024. She strives to leave a lasting impact on each student in her classroom by fostering
community, exploring diverse perspectives, and achieving musical excellence. Ms. Roysden
recently earned dual M.M. degrees from the University of Kansas in Choral Conducting and
Voice Performance, after completing her undergraduate degrees in Vocal Music Education and Vocal Performance at Carthage College in her hometown, Kenosha, WI.

Although this is Ms. Roysden’s first year teaching full-time, she has experience in the classroom as a Graduate Teaching Assistant at KU, under the mentorship of Dr. McKenna Stenson and Dr. Eduardo Garcia-Novelli assisted in the direction of four ensembles, three of which performed at the Kansas Music Educators Conference during her studies. At the 2024 KMEA conference, she not only performed and conducted in the President’s Concert with the KU Chamber Choir but also co-presented a clinic entitled “Revitalize Your Choral Warmup Routine: Best Practices to Build Technique and Develop Community” with educator Elena Cressy.

Although the choir has always been her favorite hobby, Ms. Roysden enjoys spending time outside, snuggling her cats, and sharing life with her boyfriend, Mitch Dziewior, who teaches 5-12 vocal music in Topeka.

AMY KRINKE, K-12 MUSIC CURRICULUM SPECIALIST/CHOIR DIRECTOR

Amy Krinke is currently in her 24th year as a choral director. She has taught at Lee’s Summit West High School since 2008. Amy served as the Director of Choirs at LSW from 2008-2018. Amy is the LSR-7 K-12 Music Department Chair and Curriculum Specialist, teaching two hours of choir at LSW. Mrs. Krinke graduated Magna Cum Laude from Wichita State University (Bachelor of Music Education) and UMKC Conservatory of Music (Master of Music Education).

Ensembles under her leadership have performed for the Missouri Music Educators Association Annual Conference in 2018, 2016 (Demonstration Choir), 2012, and 2007. In 2013, Lee’s Summit West Chamber Choir, Una Voce, was featured on a choral pedagogy DVD by GIA Publications, “How to Make a Good Choir Sound Great,” featuring the research of Dr. Charlene Archibeque. The Lee’s Summit West Chamber Choir presented this research again as a live session at the 2016 MMEA conference and again at the 2019 National ACDA Conference. Amy was selected as Lee’s Summit R-7 Teacher of the Year in 2015 and was named one of six finalists in the Missouri Teacher of the Year program the same year.

Formerly, Mrs. Krinke taught in the Blue Springs School District (9-12), Independence School District (9-12), and the Archdiocese of Santa Fe (K-8). Over the years, Mrs. Krinke has held numerous leadership roles in the Missouri Choral Directors Association and Missouri Music Educators Association. Most recently, Amy served as the MCDA President (2021-2023). Most of all, Amy enjoys the company of her husband Jonathan and the beautiful life they share with their 5-year-old son Anderson.

LI-HSIN CHEN, STAFF ACCOMPANIST

Dr. Li-Hsin Chen joined Lee’s Summit West High School as the staff accompanist in 2016. He performs actively as a soloist, collaborative pianist, and chamber musician throughout the United States, Europe, and Asia. He enjoys performing vocal and instrumental works as an enthusiastic, collaborative and chamber musician. His accomplishments as a soloist include performing with several orchestras around the globe and winning awards and recognition in competitions.

 During his studies, Dr. Chen was invited to participate in many music festivals and master classes, working with renowned musicians such as Alfred Brendel, András Schiff, Leon Fleisher, Dietrich Fischer-Dieskau, and Jonathan Biss. In the summer of 2017, Dr. Chen completed his Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Piano Performance under Dr. Jane Solose at UMKC, and he is currently completing a Master of Music degree in musicology under Dr. William Everett.

He holds a Concert Soloist degree from the Nürnberg Conservatory of Music, a Master of Music degree with Distinctions from the Karlsruhe Conservatory of Music in Germany, and a Bachelor of Arts degree from the Taipei National University of the Arts in Taiwan.

RETIRED STAFF

TERRIN PABST, STAFF ACCOMPANIST (Retired from LSW in 2016)

After graduating from Lebanon High School in 1978, Terrin (Gilpin) Pabst spent three years at Central Christian College of the Bible in Moberly, MO, then transferred to the University of Missouri-Columbia. There she completed a Bachelor of Science degree in Vocal Music Education, K-12, with piano concentration. Her first position was with the Ft. Zumwalt School District teaching vocal music at St. Peters Elementary School.

She then moved to Independence, MO and taught vocal music at Spring Branch Elementary and Luff Elementary. Her last year there, she married her husband, Damon Pabst. They went into the ministry for the next thirteen years, eventually moving to Texas for eight of those. They have two sons, Josiah and Gage, both of whom attended LSW High School and participated in its instrumental music program.

Upon returning to the Kansas City area, Mrs. Pabst accepted the staff accompanist position in 2004. She continues giving private piano lessons and thoroughly enjoys her work at West with both the students as well as the music staff.

KIRT MOSIER, ORCHESTRA DIRECTOR
Kirt N. Mosier is a veteran educator who has been with the LSR7 School District since 1995. In addition to his duties at Lee’s Summit West, Mr. Mosier created the Digital Media Technology Center of Excellence for the Lee’s Summit R-7 School District. Students from multiple school districts enroll at Summit Tech to learn how to produce music and video for today’s media market.

Mr. Mosier holds a BME degree from the University of Missouri at Kansas City, as well as a Masters of Music in composition from the same institution.

Mr. Mosier is an internationally active clinician and adjudicator. Mr. Mosier is also a composer and has had works featured at countless venues around the globe.

Mr. Mosier lives in Lee’s Summit with his wife and four children.