Annabelle Robinson, Director of Bands

Mrs. Robinson is in her twelfth year as the Director of Bands at Palmetto Ridge High School. She has been teaching band for over 20 years. Mrs. Robinson directs the Marching Pride, Wind Ensemble, Wind Symphony, Symphonic Winds, Percussion, and Jazz Band. She also advises the Palmetto Ridge High School Auxiliary Team. 

Mrs. Robinson is from Orland Park, Illinois. She completed her Master’s degree in Music Education with an emphasis in conducting from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois where she assisted in the direction of the Northwestern Wildcat Basketball Band. Mrs. Robinson earned her Bachelor’s degree in Music Education from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign where she served as one of the Drum Majors of the Marching Illini and Student Director of the Orange and Blues Band.

Prior to her appointment at Palmetto Ridge High School, Mrs. Robinson served as the Associate Band Director at her alma mater Carl Sandburg High School in Orland Park, Illinois. Previous to that, Mrs. Robinson taught at Morton High School in Morton, Illinois, where she was the Assistant Director for the Band and Orchestra. Mrs. Robinson currently resides in Naples, Florida with her husband Brett Robinson, who is the Director of Bands at Gulf Coast High School (gchsharkband.com). 

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Annamarie Magdaleno, Head Auxiliary Instructor

Mrs. Magdaleno is in her thirteenth year as the Head Auxiliary Instructor for the Palmetto Ridge Marching Pride Auxiliary. Mrs. Magdaleno choreographs and directs the Palmetto Ridge Auxiliary Team during both outdoor and indoor season. During indoor season, Mrs. Magdaleno travels to several competitions with her dance and guard competitive teams, and brings all indoor auxiliary ensembles to District and State Auxiliary MPAs.

Mrs. Magdaleno has been dancing for over 25 years and is trained in several dance backgrounds including Ballet, Jazz, Hip Hop, Lyrical and Contemporary. She is an alum of Palmetto Ridge High School and a former member of the Marching Pride Dance Team. She graduated from Palmetto Ridge in 2009 and earned her Bachelor's degree in Elementary Education from Florida Gulf Coast University in May of 2014. Aside from her coaching position with the Marching Pride, Mrs. Magdaleno teaches dance at Angelic Academy of Dance working with a variety of ages and levels in the dance styles of Contemporary, Lyrical, Jazz, and Hip Hop. She is also an Auxiliary Adjudicator for Florida Bandmasters Association.

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Shelby Blocker, Band Instructor

Ms. Blocker is in her fourth year working with the Marching Pride as a Percussion Instructor. 

Ms. Blocker graduated from Florida Gulf Coast University, where she earned a Bachelors in Music Education. She teaches band, orchestra, and choir at Corkscrew Middle School.

During her time at FGCU, she has taught students grades K-12 in Lee and Collier County and will continue to do so. She has also been a member of the FGCU Flute Studio and has performed standard repertoire with the Symphonic Band, Wind Orchestra and Flute Choir. Last year, Ms. Blocker served on the board for FGCU’s chapter of the National Association for Music Education. The chapter was selected to receive the 2023 NAfME Collegiate Chapter of Excellence award for the Professional Development category.

Ms. Blocker was a member of the flute section in the Marching Pride for four years, and graduated from PRHS in 2020. Her current hobbies include baking and spending time with her family and friends. 

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Mariela Font, Band Instructor

​Ms. Font is entering her fifth year working with the Marching Pride. 

Ms. Font graduated from Full Sail University with a degree in Music and Show Production and is currently working on her Masters for Special Education. She works full time as an ESE Inclusion teacher here at Palmetto Ridge High School. 

During her time at Full Sail University, she interned for House of Blues, Live Venues, and WWE on the technical aspect of Show Productions while also interning in a recording studio for music production. 

She was the alto saxophone section leader for two years in the Marching Pride while attending Palmetto Ridge High School from 2009 to 2013.

Outside of work and band, Ms. Font loves to travel and spends a lot of her time with her blended family in West Palm Beach. 

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Brendan Kaszyca, Band Instructor

Mr. Kaszyca is entering his third year working with the Marching Pride.

He earned his Bachelor’s degree in Secondary Mathematics Education from the University of South Florida (USF). While at USF, Mr. Kaszyca was an active member of the Herd of Thunder Marching Band and the Rumble Pep Band for four years. In addition, he served as both a member and president of the Kappa Tau chapter of Kappa Kappa Psi, a national honorary band fraternity. Through this role, he supported the university’s marching and concert bands throughout their performance seasons from 2019 to 2022.

Mr. Kaszyca is also a 2018 graduate of Barron Collier High School, where he was a dedicated member of the Barron Collier Marching Cougar Band during all four years of his high school career.
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Outside of professional and musical commitments, Mr. Kaszyca enjoys spending time with family and friends, playing board games, listening to music, and watching a variety of TV shows.