Our Directors
Melinda Novicki
Director of Operations / COO
Melinda has been teaching with LSM since 2015 and also performed as a clarinetist in LSM ensembles from 2014 to 2018. She is currently the Director of Bands for Airport Community Schools, and also serves as the Woodwind Caption Head and a visual instructor for the Southgate Anderson High School Marching Band.
In addition to music and marching, her performing arts background also includes equestrian vaulting, a sport of gymnastics and dance on horseback.
Melinda graduated from Michigan State University with a degree in Music Education and loves sharing the power and joy of music making with her students.
When she is not teaching, she enjoys making music, exercising, cooking, and learning at every possible opportunity.
Our Board of Directors
A Determined Team of Creative Minds
Zack Novicki
Executive Director / CEO
Zack Novicki found his love for pageantry arts in 2006 as a member of the Woodhaven Warrior Marching Band. Three years later, Zack began his first season as a member of the LakeShoremen Drum & Bugle Corps. He is currently the Associate Director of Bands for the Southgate Community School District, where he oversees the district’s award-winning marching band and winter guards.
Zack has served as a member of the WGI Winds Advisory Board since the inception of the winds division in 2015, and has played a role shaping the Winds activity into what it is today. He also serves as a member of the WGI Winds Steering Committee, where he is responsible for evaluation scoring systems, philosophies, and ongoing instructor education for the Winds activity.
Zack has worked as an “Expert Clinician” for WGI 1-on-1, a web service where some of WGI’s most experienced instructors and designers provide virtual consultations. Zack is also the owner of Novicki Music & Design LLC, where he works as a designer and consultant with several pageantry arts programs throughout the Midwest US and Canada.
When he’s not spending all of his time in “Band Land”, Zack likes to play video games, read comic books, and spend time with his family.
Doug iggi Courter
President
iggi has been marching, spinning, dancing and doing theater since the age of 7. He grew up in farm country in the middle of Michigan before moving to the Detroit Metro area during 6th grade. He attended Lakeland High School and helped take the marching band to their first Flight II gold medal at State Championships in 1991. He went on to march with the Northern Aurora Drum and Bugle corp for two summers playing the contrabass (Tuba). He then attended college and graduated with degrees in music and sociology.
He brings a wealth of knowledge from the marching band and colorguard worlds as well as the non-profit sector.
His favorite color is orange. He loves playing with and collecting Legos. He currently works in the field of housing managing a Section 8 waitlist for a host of properties in Taylor, MI. In his free time he loves spending time with his friends, exploring new locals with his boyfriend, hiking, binge watching TV and napping!!!
Martha Hancock
Vice President
Martha enjoys volunteering and for the last 17 years has served on multiple boards in several capacities. The most recent being the President of her children’s band program.
She has four children and a loving (and very understanding) husband.
She is super excited to be a small part of such a wonderful organization.
Kari Lynn Clark
Secretary
Jose Angel
Treasurer
He's Jose.
Chuck Semarjian
Historian
Chuck Semarjian has been involved in the marching arts activity since 2006. He has performed in several different ensembles during this time, including LSM from 2013 - present as a member of the Ensemble. Chuck Semarjian graduated from Wayne State University with a degree in
Secondary Education. Chuck currently works as a substitute teacher and as the Assistant Marching Band Director at Livonia Franklin High School. He also has worked with several high school marching band programs, working with percussion throughout Michigan over the past 10 years.
Kari Lynn Clark graduated in 1982 from
Oxford High School, having marched two
years with the Wildcat Marching Band and
winter guard.
Sixteen years and three children later, she
returned pageantry arts and served on staff
with Little A’s Winter Guard from Troy, MI.
The next ten years saw her continue to work
with marching band and winter guard teams
in Troy, Avondale, Brandon and Oxford High
Schools, as well as EVOLUTION and Interplay
Winter Guards, both successful independent
programs competing with Winter Guard
International. Kari had also been on staff
with the color guard of Grand Blanc
Community Schools since May of 2009,
having taken on the role of Color Guard Director in April of 2011. She retired from this position in the spring of 2020 but remains with the band program at Grand Blanc, serving on the Board of Director for the Boosters.
Ms. Clark was inducted into the Michigan Color Guard Circuit Hall of Fame in 2015, having served many years on various committees, as contest staff, and as a member of the Board of Directors. Currently, she works for WGI as Contest Staff.
Matt Van Ham
Director at Large
Matt Van Ham currently teaches Band at Churchill High School in Livonia, MI. Prior to teaching at LMS, Matt held the position of Band Director for the West Branch-Rose City Area Schools for four years, where he prides himself on having brought additional performance opportunities to the WBRC Bands, growing the bands in enrollment and musicianship, and bringing in nearly $75,000 of additional funding to the program.
Beyond Churchill, Matt teaches with LSM Performing Arts during their WGI Winds season and assists with the Southgate Anderson Marching Band. Matt also spent seven summers working at Interlochen Center for the Arts in camp life positions, holding the position of Assistant Director for the High School Boys division from 2016-2018.
Matt continues to perform on trumpet in the Standish, MI based East Shore Wind Symphony, and has previously played with the Capital City and Mountain Town Brass Bands.
Outside of music, Matt enjoys playing tennis and pickleball, road trips, and watching way too much of "The Office."
Matt completed his Masters of Music Education at the University of Michigan in 2021 and received his Bachelors of Music Education from Eastern Michigan University in 2016.
Director at Large
Sarah Weingartz
Sarah Weingartz began dancing at the young age of two and a half, and has been in the marching arts world since 2008. Starting as a flute player with the Chelsea High School Marching Band, she then discovered Color Guard. She continued to perform in WGI and DCI with: Huron Valley Alliance and Open, Phoenix Independent Open, Phantom Regiment, Interplay, and Onyx. Throughout her performing career she coached both Marching Band and Winter Guard at Clarkston High School. She is now currently coaching at Soughtgate Anderson High School. Sarah is looking forward to another great year of LSM!