Joseph Nassar, Director of Bands

Joseph Nassar received his Master of Music (MM) and Bachelor of Music Education (BME) in from Louisiana State University, and has completed post-graduate work in Educational Leadership. He holds National Board Certification in Early Adolescence/Young Adulthood Instrumental Music, and is a certified Teacher Leader.

Mr. Nassar has served as Band Director at Donaldsonville High School, Prairieville Middle School, and since 1999, Band Director at St. Amant High School in St. Amant, Louisiana. At St. Amant, Mr. Nassar conducts the Marching Band, Wind Symphony, Concert Band, and Jazz Band, and has served as the Color Guard faculty sponsor. All bands under his direction have earned numerous sweepstakes awards at LMEA state events, and the Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Wind Symphony have been ranked first many times in their respective divisions in LMEA competition.  

Mr. Nassar is active as a concert band and marching band clinician and adjudicator throughout Louisiana, and is a member of the National Association for Music Education, the Louisiana Music Educators Association, Phi Beta Mu, and the District IV Band Directors Association.

Additionally, Mr. Nassar has received many awards and accolades for teaching including:

Selection by School Band and Orchestra Magazine to represent Louisiana in the December 2008 feature entitled “50 Directors Who Make a Difference,"
Louisiana Music Educators Association State Band Division Chair
Charter Member and Vice President of the Louisiana Music Adjudicators Association
President of the LMEA District IV Band Directors Association 2007-present
Three-time recipient of the Ascension Fund Grant for Teaching Excellence
Winner of EATEL's "Reach a Kid, Teach a Kid" Grant
Induction into Phi Beta Mu, the National Bandmasters Fraternity
​Performer at the 25th Annual International Horn Symposium, Tallahassee, Florida

Joseph and Misty Nassar reside in Prairieville, Louisiana with their children, Kaitlyn, Blake, Jordan, and Chloe.

Andrew Graham, Assistant Director

Andrew Graham was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana in 1987.  He is an Alum of St. Amant Middle School and St. Amant High School, under the direction of Terri Hunter, Craig Millet, and Joseph Nassar, respectively..  Mr. Graham earned his Bachelor of Music Education (BME) from Louisiana State University in 2009, having performed in the LSU Tiger Band and Drum Line, the LSU Percussion Ensemble Hamiruge, and the LSU Symphonic Winds and Wind Ensemble.  His directors at LSU were Dr. Linda Moorhouse and Frank Wickes.  He has studied percussion with Trae Norsworthy and Dr. Brett W. Dietz. 

Mr. Graham served as the Band Director at Alfred Bonnabel Magnet Academy High School in Kenner, Louisiana from 2009-2013.  There he took his Concert Band to LMEA District Festival every year and to LMEA State Festival in 2012.  His groups performed throughout  the New Orleans metro area at numerous Mardi Gras parades every year, New Orleans Pelicans games, New Orleans Voodoo Games, and various other festivals and events including the 2011 Sugar Bowl Halftime Show.  His groups at Bonnabel also performed nationally, having marched in the 2013 National Memorial Day Parade in Washington, D.C.

In 2013, Mr. Graham accepted the position of Assistant Band Director at his alma mater.  He teaches the Drum Line and Percussion Ensembles as well as conducts the Symphonic Band.

Mr. Graham’s professional affiliations include NAfME, LMEA, PAS, and the District IV Band Director’s Association.  He resides in his home town of St. Amant with his wife, Olivia, and their two children, Norah and Myles.

Craig Millet, Assistant Director

Craig Millet was born in Alexandria, Louisiana in 1966. He graduated from Alexandria Sr. High School, where he was under the direction of Edmund Winston III.

In 1989, Mr. Millet earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Instrumental Music Education from Louisiana Tech University. While at Louisiana Tech, he participated with the Saxophone Quartet, Marching Band, Jazz Band, Symphonic Band, and the Ruston Symphony Orchestra. While attending Louisiana Tech, he was under the direction of Raymond Young and Daniel Pittman. He has also studied privately with Dr. Edmund Winston II, Alan Keating, Dr. Larry Gwodz, and Sigurd Rascher. In 1990, he accepted the Assistant Director position under Carl Schexnayder at St. Amant High School. In 1999, Mr. Millet accepted the Director of Bands position and held that position until stepping back into an Assistant Director position in 2020.

All of the St. Amant Bands, including Marching Band, Concert Band, Symphonic Band, and Wind Symphony, consistently receive superior ratings at District and State Festival. Under his direction, performing grade IV and V literature, the Wind Symphony has never made less than straight Superiors and Sweepstakes at any festival. In 2001, Mr. Millet received the Band Master of the Year Award for excellence in the field of music education from Louisiana Tech University.

Mr. Millet's professional affiliations include Phi Mu Alpha, Phi Beta Mu, MENC, LMEA, TBA, and NBA. He has also a Past President of the District IV Band Directors Association.

Craig and Julie Millet live in Prairieville, Louisiana and have two children, Lindsey and Matthew.