Jef Shaffer
Music Director, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Rehearsal Director
Jef Shaffer is a live musician, recording artist, producer, and podcaster. An Ohio native, Jef moved from Cincinnati to Columbus when he was 13 years old and has been proud to call Central Ohio his home for over three decades. Additionally, Jef is a father to two amazing adult children.
Jef started singing and theater at a very early age, adding piano and trumpet to his musical repertoire at age 12. When he was 14, Jef began learning guitar and within a year, started a small rock band with school friends as the guitarist and lead singer. He has never lost his passion and excitement for live performing since.
Jef is multi-instrumental, proficient with every instrument offered by School of Rock, which can be evidenced by his 2020 EP solo release, "Ghosts," for which he performed all instruments/vocals in addition to engineering and production of the album.
Notable accomplishments include performing on The Buckeye Cruise for Cancer (2015-2020), performing the national anthem for the Columbus Blue Jackets, Crew, and Clippers, as well as appearances on Good Day Columbus and the Wags & Elliott Show.
As Music Director, Jef brings a passion for both music and instruction to School of Rock, always striving to challenge and motivate his students with structured lessons, clear expectations, positive and constructive feedback, and just the right amount of fun.
Jillian Jenkins
Assistant General Manager, Studio Coordinator
Jillian has worked at the School of Rock Gahanna in Columbus, Ohio since August 2021. Her daughter has been a student here since late 2019! Jillian can be found in the front office or at the front desk either managing the day-to-day tasks or helping a family with the schedule.
Although she does not teach any instruments, Jillian did take piano lessons for two years as a teenager and has taken a couple of bass guitar lessons since working here. She enjoys being crafty, going to concerts (especially ones that her daughter is participating in), hanging out with friends, or traveling to see her granddaughter when she can.
Glen Siggers
Drum Teacher, Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Glen Siggers was born in Frankfurt, Germany but was raised in Mobile, Alabama. He began his musical journey at the age of 16. Throughout his musical career, Glen has played with a plethora of seasoned musicians and opened for B.B. King, George Clinton, Three Dog Night, The Wailer, Mitch Rider, Flock of Seagulls, and Herbie Hancock just to name a few. Glen was also the touring drummer for Frankie Goes To Hollywood for 15 years. After moving to Columbus, Ohio, he played with Clutterhouse, Za Unitt, The Angry Men, and The Lovebenders. While with The Lovebenders, they were the feature band of The Buckeye Cruise for Cancer pediatric cancer organization. Glen is now starting a new journey with acoustic performances.
Augustus Gabriel
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Rehearsal Director
Augustus is a music nerd who won his first guitar from an arcade and hasn’t been without one since. Initially scouring every song he came across for a guitar part he could learn, Augustus has now taken a deeper focus on music theory and song structure.
Today, Augustus finds the same joy in expanding his musical knowledge as he does in sharing his understanding with others.
Sara Smith
Bass Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher
Sara has been playing music since about 5 years old. On piano, French Horn, Cello, Trombone, and Bass, she has been performing for the better part of two decades. Sara began teaching her junior year of high school as the last graduating French Horn player, wanting to maintain the section. Having lived in Columbus since 2015, Sara freelances throughout the city on bass and cello and has worked on various albums in studios and playing live. Outside of Columbus, she’s played on cruise ships that travel all over the world, usually performing 6-7 days a week, 2-4 sets a day. With a focus on bass, keys, and vocals, her main goal as a teacher is to give her students the ability to get closer and closer to playing whatever genre or style they want both in lessons and onstage by building a strong understanding of that instrument. Main topics will include ear training, learning how to read music, and working toward the right tone on a given instrument.
Marco Castro
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Vocal Teacher, Drum Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Rehearsal Director
Marco Castro is a multi-instrumentalist and co-founder of the indie band The Castros, alongside his wife Sara. He is very passionate about using music as a tool for connection between people from different places and spreading music literacy among anybody who desires to learn, no matter the level or age they are.
Marco is very involved in several music scenes, working with local Columbus concert promoters, touring bands, and festivals like Furnace Fest, Austin City Limits, Lollapalooza, and Audiofeed Music Festival. His band has DIY toured nationally and internationally several times and always looks for ways to bridge connections from all these different scenes and foster a community of camaraderie and mutual support with the music they make.
Marco was born and raised in San Jose, Costa Rica, and he's called Columbus his home since 2007.
Hawa Tarawally
Guitar Teacher, Bass Guitar Teacher, Drums Teacher, Keyboard + Piano Teacher, Vocals Teacher, Little Wing Director, Rookies Director
Hawa is a genre-blending force born in Columbus, OH - a multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and producer who made a bold entrance with her 2020 debut single "Beloved". She quickly followed up with "Lovers", doubling down on her fearless approach to sound and storytelling. Mixing lush piano, cinematic strings, bold brass, and irresistibly groovy basslines, Hawa crafts a musical world that refuses to stay in one lane. With a natural gift for arrangement and production, she's not just playing instruments - she's rewriting the rules. One listen, and it's clear: the future sounds like Hawa.
Hawa teaches guitar, bass guitar, vocals, keyboard + piano, and drums, as well as the Little Wing and Rookies classes at School of Rock Gahanna.
Drew Burgess
Drums Teacher, Rock 101 Rehearsal Director
September 3, 1964, was the birth date of Drew’s passion for music - the day Drew and his siblings saw “The Beatles” at the Indiana State Fair grounds. Drew was 6years old. After that show, Drew’s older brother Duane, who played guitar said “You need to learn how to play drums so we can start our band”. That’s when Drew’s musical journey began.
Drew took drum lessons for six months and played drums in his school band in Centerville, Ohio. He was urged by his instructor to move from playing the snare drum to taking on a full kit. He did, and at 11 years old he joined a traveling group called “Singout Kettering” - a branch of the national touring group “Up With People”.
Since then, Drew has continued his musical career alongside his professional career as an architect. He discovered commonalities between the two that have continued to shape his journey. Drew focuses on fundamentals and establishing a strong foundation for shaping and playing rhythm. He puts the utmost importance on keeping time, which is the number one role of a drummer in a band. He also emphasizes discipline and simplicity as the keys to successful education and performance.
A Dayton, Ohio native, Drew moved to Columbus with his wife, Helen in 1992, and together they have a daughter Samantha and grandson Jack James. Drew’s passion for music has continued to grow through participation in a number of cover bands as well as recording and performance of original material. He has recently become more involved with engineering and production as he spends more time in the studio. Drew draws on all of his past experiences as a Rock 101 teacher at School of Rock Gahanna, where he endeavors to create a focused environment, encouraging exploration, hard work, and fun as the recipe for success.
Ben Canton
Summer Camp Director
Music has been an integral part of Ben's life since childhood, from the days of grade school orchestra up until the present. Ben has played some of the biggest stages in the world, shared bills with the likes of The Smashing Pumpkins, Cold War Kids, KISS, and many more, and has been a part of almost every form of ensemble a musician can be.
Ben's passion for performing in as many settings and styles as possible is matched only by his love of sharing the craft and helping others, like students at School of Rock Gahanna, turn the sounds they imagine into reality.