Snare Staff
Ian Haas : Snare Staff
Ian Haas is a percussionist and marching arts educator & performer from Fort Wayne, IN. He currently teaches with Homestead High School in Fort Wayne, IN. Ian also graduated from Ball State University last December with a Bachelor's degree in Film and Media Studies.
Ian started his WGI marching career with Veritas for their 2020 production and stayed with the program until his age-out in 2023 where he served as a section & ensemble leader. As well as WGI, Ian spent two summers with the Blue Knights Drum & Bugle Corps from 2021 through 2022. This will be Ian’s third year on staff with Veritas.
Ian resides in Fort Wayne, IN and is the percussion director at Homestead High School. He intends to grow the pageantry arts scene within his hometown as well as the greater Indianapolis area.
Caleb Ward : Snare Staff
Caleb is a percussion educator from Northern Virginia. After graduating, Caleb would march Music City Drum Corps (2021-22), Imperial Dynasty (2022), Phantom Regiment (2023-24) and the GMU Indoor Drumline (2023-25) where he would age out as a section leader.
In between seasons Caleb would work with local NoVA high schools, such as West Springfield High School and Chantilly high school as a battery staff member, and percussion director at Alexandria City High School.
In Spring of 2025, Caleb moved to Elletsville, Indiana where he now works as the current percussion director for Owen Valley High School.
Matt Pletcher : Snare Staff
Matt Pletcher is a marching arts educator and performer from Carmel, IN. He currently works in Indianapolis as a pharmaceutical validation engineer, and enjoys teaching and drumming in his spare time. His teaching experience includes percussion education at Lafayette Jefferson High School, Decatur Central High School, and Carmel High School.
Matt’s WGI career began with marching snare drum for Veritas in 2020. Following COVID-19’s challenges and shutdowns, he returned in 2022 and aged out with the program in 2024 as the snare drum and battery section leader. Additionally, he had the amazing opportunity to march with the Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps in 2022.
This will be Matt’s second year on staff for Veritas, and he is extremely excited to continue to contribute to the program’s growth and success.
Joseph Cheerva : Snare Staff
Joseph Cheerva is a percussionist and percussion educator from Indianapolis. He was born and raised in the Indianapolis area and now lives in Greenwood. He attended Center Grove HS, where he performed with their PSW Finalist percussion ensemble until his graduation in 2019.
Since then, Joseph has performed with Veritas in 2022 and 2023, Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps in 2022, and currently teaches at Franklin Community HS.
This is Joseph’s first year on staff for Veritas, and he is thrilled to share his passion for rudimental snare drumming and the marching arts.