The Calhoun County High School “Thunder and Lightning” Marching Band made history recently when the 42-member ensemble won the 2025 Allstate Sugar Bowl Band Competition.
Under the direction of Travis Lawton, the band achieved a total sweep in Class A in the competition and was hand-selected to perform on a national stage at the Allstate Sugar Bowl Parade on Dec. 31, 2025, in New Orleans.
The band is made up of students from Calhoun County High School, St. Matthews K-8 School and Sandy Run K-8 School.
Competing against about 60 bands, Calhoun County was among 10 selected nationally to participate. The competition was held Dec. 29 before the New Year’s parade.
In Class A, the band placed first in both major competitive formats — parade and field show — and earned every caption award for its class in both performances, totaling 13 awards.
Parade caption awards were presented for outstanding music, general effect, percussion, auxiliary and drum major. Field show caption awards included the same categories, with the addition of outstanding marching.
The band capped the sweep with the overall sweepstakes trophy.
The band’s trip to New Orleans was funded by the Calhoun County community.
Calhoun County School District Superintendent Ferlondo Tullock thanked parents and the community for allowing the students to travel across the country to showcase their talents. The band previously traveled to Washington, D.C., as part of the July Fourth parade.
"We are the first that ever got that amount of trophies at the Sugar Bowl," Lawton said.
Calhoun County Council recognized the accomplishment when it unanimously passed a proclamation last month.
"We are exceedingly proud of Calhoun County, not only for the band, but everything they do up there," County Council Chairman James Haigler said. "We really appreciate it. We are really proud of the whole school system in Calhoun County."
Other council members also praised the band for its success.
The South Carolina House of Representatives also recognized the band with the passage of a resolution on Feb. 19.
Meet News19 Teacher of the Week LaNishia Berry
At Calhoun County High School, one teacher is using Roblox to turn learning into an adventure, where English class feels more like a world you can build.
ST MATTHEWS, S.C. — At Calhoun County High School, Mrs. LaNishia Berry’s classroom feels a lot like Roblox. It's full of energy, teamwork, and imagination.
“Roblox involves a lot of knowing how to do Java, and knowing how to navigate the actual codes to make the things appear in their world. So it allows the kids to think on a critical level while also doing something they actually love,” says Mrs. Berry.
And just like Roblox, Mrs. Berry says teaching is all about building, not lessons, but lives.
“Every child is a learner. A lot of times when they get into the classroom they get discouraged because they may not learn like the next person does. So my goal is to continue making learning and effective but also equitable across all children,” says Mrs. Berry.
“She provides a very comfortable learning environment where you can be yourself and have space to grow," says one of Mrs. Berry's students.
“She’s very caring and supportive. She’ll know if you’re feeling bad and she’ll be like, ‘What’s wrong? Why are you feeling like that?’” says another student.
And teaching has been Mrs. Berry's calling.
Born in Columbia, Mrs. Berry graduated from Claflin. She also has her Masters from North Carolina A&T and now is at Liberty working on her Doctorate.
“I knew I wanted to be a part of something bigger than just higher education. I wanted to be a part of something that could actually impact and keep the chain going into bettering society, and better education for all the kids,” says Mrs. Berry.
And her students see that impact.
“She’s understanding. Like, if you had to turn something in late and had a valid reason, she gets it. She actually listens,” says one of Mrs. Berry's students.
For the past four years, Mrs. Berry has been in Calhoun County using video games like Roblox for her lessons.
“They love dealing with technology, but a lot of times we see it as bad, because that's what they're doing to take up their time. So we've done different museums in Roblox to help them learn with rhetoric. With Hamlet and Macbeth, they can actually go into the interactive worlds and actually participate in the world, but also learning with me the actual text,” says Mrs. Berry.
“Mrs. Berry is just one of the best teachers here. She knows what’s going on even if you don’t say it. I could go on forever!," says one of Mrs. Berry's students.
"I've seen what it looks like when a child goes out or their spark goes away. So the goal is to keep that spark going no matter what,” says Mrs. Berry.
If you know a teacher like Mrs. Berry who deserves to be recognized for their hard work in the classroom you can nominate them by emailing us at TOW@WLTX.COM. Tell us what that educator is doing every day to go above and beyond in the classroom.
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