Caleb Bradley, CHS 2018 and Josh Astle, CHS 2019, will be marching as part of the Band Director’s Marching Band in the 2026 Rose Bowl Parade.
Bradley, teaches in Newcomerstown Schools and Astle teaches in Sandusky Schools. They are two of over 350 music educators selected from across the nation to be a part of the band. The Band Directors Marching Band is led by nationally known veteran band director Jon Waters (current director at Bowling Green State University).
The Band Directors Marching Band was created by Saluting America’s Band Directors . SABD is a project of the Michael D. Sewell Memorial Foundation, created in 2017, to carry on the legacy of the late Mike Sewell, longtime band director in the Pickerington, Ohio school system. The project was launched to recognize and celebrate the extraordinary dedication and accomplishments of band directors everywhere. The Band Directors Marching Band has marched in the 2022 Rose Parade with 270 members and, most recently, in the 2023 Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade with 400 members.
Our theme is “America’s Band Directors: We teach music. We teach life.™”
The extraordinary dedication and accomplishments of band directors are well known to their students, to their families, to parents and to school teachers and administrators. These dedicated music educators and leaders work long hours to not only teach and conduct music, but to teach life itself. Student lives in particular are positively changed by a motivational leader who teach, inspire and mentor them. For this reason, we chose the theme for our project to be “America’s Band Directors: We teach music. We teach life.”
