Ren Patel is shown in this photo from his Facebook page. (Photo credit: John Patyk)

Fort Mill High School has named Ren Patel as FMHS Director of Bands.

Patel has served as Interim Director of Bands since former director John Pruitt’s medical leave and retirement, according to a school district press release.

Ren Patel (FMSD photo)

Patel completed his student teaching with John Pruitt in 2011 while finishing his music education degree at Winthrop University. After serving as a band director in Cherokee and Greenville Counties, he returned to Fort Mill High School in the summer of 2014. 

“He is an accomplished bassoonist and has been the principal music arranger for the FMHS marching band since 2017,” a release says. “He also composes and arranges music for other bands in the Carolinas.”

Greg "Ricky Bobby" Rickabaugh has lived in the Fort Mill and York County community since 2006. He has covered the area while a reporter for The Charlotte Observer and a freelance writer for The Fort Mill...