Leadership Team
JARA CLARK
[email protected]
Jara Clark is the former Guard Director at Jenks High School in Jenks, Oklahoma. Since her time with Jenks over the past 11 years, the Jenks Guards have seen enormous success, both in marching & winter seasons. Some of their successes include: 4 Winter Guard International Regional 1st place finishes, 2017 Winter Guard International World Championship Semifinalist, & 2018 Bands of America Grand National Finalists. Mrs. Jara has also taught at Union High School, Sapulpa High School, and Eclectix, an independent Winterguard from Oklahoma where she had also performed.
Mrs. Jara has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Northeastern State University & is a certified Pilates instructor.
Jara Clark is the former Guard Director at Jenks High School in Jenks, Oklahoma. Since her time with Jenks over the past 11 years, the Jenks Guards have seen enormous success, both in marching & winter seasons. Some of their successes include: 4 Winter Guard International Regional 1st place finishes, 2017 Winter Guard International World Championship Semifinalist, & 2018 Bands of America Grand National Finalists. Mrs. Jara has also taught at Union High School, Sapulpa High School, and Eclectix, an independent Winterguard from Oklahoma where she had also performed.
Mrs. Jara has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Northeastern State University & is a certified Pilates instructor.
MICHAEL CLARK
[email protected]
Michael Clark is the husband of Jara Clark, who was the Guard Director at Jenks High School from 2011 to 2022. Michael volunteered his time with both the Jenks High School Trojan Pride Marching Band and the Jenks Guard programs as prop designer/builder and logistical travel coordinator for the guard programs. He was the lead prop designer and builder for Jenks from 2013-2022. He was also prop designer and builder for the Union High School Renegade Regiment Marching Band and Union Guard programs from 2006-2010. He was on staff with Eclectix Independent Winterguard from 2014-2015. He works full time as a computer network engineer at a managed service provider firm in Tulsa, OK. His notable BOA show was the 2018 Jenks fall show entitled “Carman” which placed 9th overall at Bands of America Grand National Championships. Notable WGI shows with Eclectix Independent was their 2014 show “Black Swan” which placed 8th in the Independent Open class at WGI World Championships and their 2015 show “String Theory” which placed 3rd in the Independent Open class at the WGI World Championships.
Michael Clark is the husband of Jara Clark, who was the Guard Director at Jenks High School from 2011 to 2022. Michael volunteered his time with both the Jenks High School Trojan Pride Marching Band and the Jenks Guard programs as prop designer/builder and logistical travel coordinator for the guard programs. He was the lead prop designer and builder for Jenks from 2013-2022. He was also prop designer and builder for the Union High School Renegade Regiment Marching Band and Union Guard programs from 2006-2010. He was on staff with Eclectix Independent Winterguard from 2014-2015. He works full time as a computer network engineer at a managed service provider firm in Tulsa, OK. His notable BOA show was the 2018 Jenks fall show entitled “Carman” which placed 9th overall at Bands of America Grand National Championships. Notable WGI shows with Eclectix Independent was their 2014 show “Black Swan” which placed 8th in the Independent Open class at WGI World Championships and their 2015 show “String Theory” which placed 3rd in the Independent Open class at the WGI World Championships.
Daymon Sherin
[email protected]
Daymon Sherin is a 1999 graduate of Owasso High School. He attended Oklahoma State University earning his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music degrees. Since graduating, Mr. Sherin has served as an educator in Oklahoma. As a band director, his concert bands earned Superior ratings at State/District band contests, his private woodwind students are consistently named to the All-State and All-Region honor bands, and his marching bands have earned success as a consistent Bands of America Regional and Super Regional Finalist and was a 2018 BOA Grand National Finalist. In addition to band, Mr. Sherin has been involved with Winterguards as a performer, instructor, and designer. As a performer, he was a 2-time WGI World Championship Finalist with the Black Gold Winterguard. As instructor/designer, he has worked alongside Mike and Jara Clark with groups being named WGPO Oklahoma State Champions, WGI Regional Champions, and a WGI World Championship Open Class Semi-Finalist.
Daymon Sherin is a 1999 graduate of Owasso High School. He attended Oklahoma State University earning his Bachelor of Music Education and Master of Music degrees. Since graduating, Mr. Sherin has served as an educator in Oklahoma. As a band director, his concert bands earned Superior ratings at State/District band contests, his private woodwind students are consistently named to the All-State and All-Region honor bands, and his marching bands have earned success as a consistent Bands of America Regional and Super Regional Finalist and was a 2018 BOA Grand National Finalist. In addition to band, Mr. Sherin has been involved with Winterguards as a performer, instructor, and designer. As a performer, he was a 2-time WGI World Championship Finalist with the Black Gold Winterguard. As instructor/designer, he has worked alongside Mike and Jara Clark with groups being named WGPO Oklahoma State Champions, WGI Regional Champions, and a WGI World Championship Open Class Semi-Finalist.
JEREMY STEVENS
[email protected]
Jeremy is currently the Director of Theatre for Broken Arrow High School, after having spent the last 6 years as the Director of Community Engagement for the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Jeremy served as a public school choral music teacher with Broken Arrow Public Schools and Union Public Schools prior to his time at the TPAC. Jeremy has a degree in Piano Performance and Voice performance, and a degree in Theatre Arts all from Arkansas Tech University. As a strong advocate for the arts, Jeremy has been on stage either as a director or performer for most of his life and values the educational process that it teaches.
Jeremy is currently the Director of Theatre for Broken Arrow High School, after having spent the last 6 years as the Director of Community Engagement for the Tulsa Performing Arts Center. Jeremy served as a public school choral music teacher with Broken Arrow Public Schools and Union Public Schools prior to his time at the TPAC. Jeremy has a degree in Piano Performance and Voice performance, and a degree in Theatre Arts all from Arkansas Tech University. As a strong advocate for the arts, Jeremy has been on stage either as a director or performer for most of his life and values the educational process that it teaches.
KIM VENTO
[email protected]
Kim Vento has worked for over 28 years in the marching and pageantry arts arena. Kim has been a choreographer, instructor, clinician and adjudicator working with pageantry arts camps, drum corps and high school groups throughout the Midwest who have won multiple state, regional, and national titles including 2 BOA Grand National Championships. She is currently the Executive Director of the Broken Arrow Performing Arts Center, home of the Kristin Chenoweth Theatre where she hosts the Kristin Chenoweth Broadway Bootcamp and masterclasses for high school students from all over the country as well as a magnitude of concerts and Broadway tours. She is an active board member of ArtsOK; the Regional Arts Alliance of Broken Arrow and a committee member for Music for All’s Advocacy in Action initiative.
Kim Vento has worked for over 28 years in the marching and pageantry arts arena. Kim has been a choreographer, instructor, clinician and adjudicator working with pageantry arts camps, drum corps and high school groups throughout the Midwest who have won multiple state, regional, and national titles including 2 BOA Grand National Championships. She is currently the Executive Director of the Broken Arrow Performing Arts Center, home of the Kristin Chenoweth Theatre where she hosts the Kristin Chenoweth Broadway Bootcamp and masterclasses for high school students from all over the country as well as a magnitude of concerts and Broadway tours. She is an active board member of ArtsOK; the Regional Arts Alliance of Broken Arrow and a committee member for Music for All’s Advocacy in Action initiative.
Instructional Staff
Amanda Cook
Amanda Cook is a 2012 Union High School graduate. She started her 8th grade year in Winterguard and spun all throughout High School. After graduation, she took her first guard technician job at Bartlesville High School that fall season. That winter season of 2013, Amanda was hired at Jenks High School as the Assistant Guard Director. While teaching at Jenks, she was also spinning with the independent group Eclectix Independent. She was a member of Eclectix Independent 2013 & 2014. In 2015, Amanda graduated Tulsa Community College with her Liberal Arts Degree. After 2017, she was accepted to Northeastern State University and paused her teaching career to pursue her Marketing degree. Graduated in 2019, and returned back to Jenks as a technician. Amanda was also a member in the inaugural year for Zephyrus Independent Winterguard in 2021. She continued teaching at Jenks until May 2023.
Braxton Delewski
Braxton Delewski is a 2016 graduate of Jenks High School, where he was a member of the Band and Winterguard programs.
Mr. Delewski has extensive world class performing experience. He has marched with Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps (2018), the Blue Starts Drum and Bugle Corps (2019), as well as the Independent World Class Winterguard CGT Denton (2019-2020). He was also an inaugural member of Zephyrus Independent (2021). Most recently, Mr. Delewski was a captain with Mirage Performance Ensemble (2022). This was the inaugural year of Mirage and the group was promoted during the season from Open to World Class. From 2018-2021, Mr. Delewski was an Assistant Colorguard Director at Jenks. In 2021-2022, Mr. Delewski was a Technician and Private Lessons Instructor for Braswell High School and Red Oak High School in Texas. Mr. Delewski has returned to Oklahoma and is again the Assistant Guard Director at Jenks.
Mr. Delewski has extensive world class performing experience. He has marched with Troopers Drum and Bugle Corps (2018), the Blue Starts Drum and Bugle Corps (2019), as well as the Independent World Class Winterguard CGT Denton (2019-2020). He was also an inaugural member of Zephyrus Independent (2021). Most recently, Mr. Delewski was a captain with Mirage Performance Ensemble (2022). This was the inaugural year of Mirage and the group was promoted during the season from Open to World Class. From 2018-2021, Mr. Delewski was an Assistant Colorguard Director at Jenks. In 2021-2022, Mr. Delewski was a Technician and Private Lessons Instructor for Braswell High School and Red Oak High School in Texas. Mr. Delewski has returned to Oklahoma and is again the Assistant Guard Director at Jenks.
Derek highfield
Derek Highfield is currently the co guard director at Owasso High School in Owasso, Oklahoma. In the time Derek has been at Owasso he has helped build Owasso’s Winterguard program and has had great success. Owasso has been BOA Super Regional Finalist for numerous years. In addition to teaching Derek has marched Troopers 2016,2017 and Madison Scouts 2018. He has also marched local Oklahoma Winterguard groups, Archon Independent 16 along with Memorial Independent 17.
Derek is a recent graduate from Rogers State University with a Bachelors of Fine Art with a focus on studio art. Through out Derek’s educational career and today he works full time as a costume designer for Black and Pink Dance Supplies. Derek gets to use his degree in art to help create unique costumes for dance and color guard teams. Derek spends any of his free time in his painting studio, working on portrait paintings.
Derek is a recent graduate from Rogers State University with a Bachelors of Fine Art with a focus on studio art. Through out Derek’s educational career and today he works full time as a costume designer for Black and Pink Dance Supplies. Derek gets to use his degree in art to help create unique costumes for dance and color guard teams. Derek spends any of his free time in his painting studio, working on portrait paintings.
Julie Lynch
Julie Lynch has been an educator and choreographer for guards in the Northeast Oklahoma region for the last 12 years. Julie is a 2010 graduate of Owasso High School and marched drum corps with the Cadets. During her time while on staff at Owasso High School, their band program was a BOA St. Louis Super-Regional Champion and a BOA Grand National Finalist. Julie served as the Color Guard Director at Coweta High School from 2013-2023. In that time, Coweta won seven 5A OBA State Championship titles, been a BOA Super-Regional finalist in Atlanta, Georgia and were the BOA Regional Champions in Flagstaff, Arizona in 2019.
Julie is a 2015 graduate of the University of Tulsa with a Bachelors of Science in Petroleum Engineering. Julie has worked full time in the oil and gas industry since 2015. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her twin sons, Jett and Cameron, and her husband, Clay.
Julie is a 2015 graduate of the University of Tulsa with a Bachelors of Science in Petroleum Engineering. Julie has worked full time in the oil and gas industry since 2015. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling and spending time with her twin sons, Jett and Cameron, and her husband, Clay.
Olivia McCoy
Olivia McCoy is a 2006 graduate of Broken Arrow High School and was a member of the Spirit from JSU Drum & Bugle Corps in 2008. Olivia has been working with high school marching bands in NE Oklahoma since 2010 as a hornline choreographer and Winterguard tech. During her time with Coweta HS (2017-2022), the band won four 5A state championships, were regional BOA finalists in Atlanta, GA and Johnson City, TN, and were BOA Flagstaff regional champions. Olivia currently works with Bartlesville HS, Sapulpa HS, and is on design staff as a choreographer for Morningtide Music.
Olivia graduated from Oklahoma State University with a BS in Public Health. She loves black coffee, baking cakes, and Stephen King books.
Olivia graduated from Oklahoma State University with a BS in Public Health. She loves black coffee, baking cakes, and Stephen King books.
Choreographer
robert Jordan
Robert Jordan is a passionate Colorguard instructor, designer, and choreographer with over a decade of experience in cyber marching arts. Having had the opportunity to perform with renowned organizations such as Fantasia Winterguard and The Blue Devils Drum Corps, he has since devoted his career to sharing his expertise with students and instructors from all around the world.
Previously based in Southern California, Robert directed a multitude of programs, refining his skills in design, choreography, and technical program development. Now residing in St. Louis, Missouri, he works as a designer, choreographer, and consultant, collaborating with programs across four countries to make the marching arts accessible to students of all levels and backgrounds.
With a dedication to supporting both experienced performers and beginners, Robert is enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge and experience in various settings. He is committed to helping students improve their skills, establish consistency in their technique, and elevate their overall performance.
Previously based in Southern California, Robert directed a multitude of programs, refining his skills in design, choreography, and technical program development. Now residing in St. Louis, Missouri, he works as a designer, choreographer, and consultant, collaborating with programs across four countries to make the marching arts accessible to students of all levels and backgrounds.
With a dedication to supporting both experienced performers and beginners, Robert is enthusiastic about sharing his knowledge and experience in various settings. He is committed to helping students improve their skills, establish consistency in their technique, and elevate their overall performance.
THIS TEAM IS SUPPORTED BY THE ZEPHYRUS ARTS INSTITUTE BOARD OF DIRECTORS
