HISTORY
 

Irmo High School in Columbia, South Carolina is well known for both its award winning dance team and its color guard. What many people don't realize is that these two teams are one and the same - the Irmo Hi-Steppers perform both as the school's dance team and as the color guard for the marching band.

Things didn't start off this way. The Hi-Steppers dance team was created in the "70's" as an after-school club that performed at one or two events, but the band had had a color guard long before that. Lauren Midkiff Metts took over as director of both groups in 1986 and soon made the decision to combine them, incorporating more dance into the band shows.

Ms. Metts encouraged the girls to think about how great it would feel to do something completely different from other schools in the area. Eventually, the girls and their parents began to believe in this new program, and they were on their way.

It may seem that having to develop skills in two different areas would make it impossible to excel at either one. It's not easy, but the Hi-Steppers have been able to develop a training program that allows them to be successful in both competitive arenas.

In order to prepare for both dance team and color guard, Hi-Steppers have to start early. Auditions are held in March, with about 40 girls being selected. The Hi-Stepper team begins practicing in April, continuing well into the summer. In June/July the team goes to UDA dance camp. In August they practice about nine hours a day for two weeks with the marching band to perfect the competition show. After marching band season, the Hi-Steppers start working on dances for dance team competitions.

It does take a lot of extra preparation and hard work to be good at both dance team and color guard, but team members all agree that it's worth it. In the words of both current and former Hi-Steppers and their parents, being selected to be a Hi-Stepper is the opportunity of a lifetime. Over the years, the Hi-Steppers have performed for the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in New York City, the Aloha Bowl in Hawaii, the Cotton Bowl in Dallas, the Peach Bowl in Atlanta, the Senior Bowl in Mobile, Alabama and the original St. Patrick's Day Parade in Dublin, Ireland.

Excerpt from Lauren M. Metts, "Joining Forces", In Motion,Fall,1999