Meet The Staff

Kevin Leonard

Mr. Kevin Leonard is the Director of Bands for Meade County Schools in Brandenburg, KY where he teaches all grade levels of the Meade County Band (7-12). Since joining the program in 2018, the Stuart Pepper Middle School and Meade County High School Bands have received continuous Distinguished ratings at the KMEA Large Ensemble Assessment Event. The Meade County High School Marching Band has received numerous awards including Best Overall Music, Class Champions, and Reserve Grand Champions.

Students under Mr. Leonard have been accepted to All State, All District, and regional Honor Bands. In addition to teaching all band classes, he also teaches one period of high school Piano Lab and heads the after school MCHS Jazz Band, Percussion Ensemble, and Pep Band. 

Prior to arriving in Meade County, Kevin was the Assistant Director of Bands at East Hardin Middle School in Glendale, KY. He also has three years of Drum Corps International teaching experience (Casper Troopers 2016, Oregon Crusaders 2017, Sacramento Mandarins 2018). Mr. Leonard is a graduate of North Hardin High School and holds a Music Education degree from Western Kentucky University. 

Tara Poole

Mrs. Tara Poole is a 1997 graduate of Meade County High School where she participated in the MCHS Marching Band Color Guard and winter guard. She began teaching at Stuart Pepper Middle School in 2002 and currently teaches freshman English at MCHS. She and her husband have four children, two of whom have participated in the MCHS Marching Band. She became a color guard instructor in 2017 and began helping with the winter guard program after.  Mrs. Poole enjoys working with the guard and loves seeing their growth over the years. She strives to assist the directors and students to help our band program be the best it can be!

Aaron McGillivray

Mr. Aaron McGillivray is a 2020 graduate from Breckinridge County High School. After this Mr. McGillivray continued playing in band throughout college where he attended Western Kentucky University under the direction of Dr. Matthew McCurry. During this time Mr. McGillivray would play quads for the drumline at WKU and took on a leadership role from his sophomore  to senior year. While at WKU, Mr. McGillivray took several semesters of lessons with Dr. Mark Berry and Dr. Scott Harris. With Dr. Mark Berry, Mr. McGillivray studied various percussion instruments and techniques for a more traditional and formal approach to percussion.  With Dr. Scott Harris, Mr. McGillivray studied marching arts along with drumset lessons focusing on world percussion and jazz during this time. Mr. McGillivray is on track to graduate in May of 2024 from WKU with a Bachelors in History along with a Minor in Music.

Mikaela Herbst

Mikaela Stewart-Herbst is a 2016 graduate of Meade County High School. She participated with the MCHS marching band her four years of high school and continued at Western Kentucky University for 2 years where she was captain. Mikaela has been with the MCHS band program as an instructor since 2018 and choreographer and designer since 2020. She has previously worked with other guard programs such as Elizabethtown High School and Caverna High School. Outside of the band program, Mikaela is a full-time registered nurse. In her free time, she loves to be with her daughter and husband. Mikaela loves to work with the MCHS band program and enjoys seeing the growth and progress from each student. She is excited to be a part of and see the future of the program."