107 of the 2026 GRAMMY Music Educator Award^TM Quarterfinalists Are NAfME Members

107 of the 2026 GRAMMY Music Educator Award^TM Quarterfinalists Are NAfME Members

The Music Educator Award Is Presented by The Recording Academy^TM and the GRAMMY Museum^®

The Recording Academy™ and GRAMMY Museum^® has announced 200 quarterfinalists for the 2026 GRAMMY Music Educator Award™, and of that number, 107 are currently members of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME)*. Nominations from 180 cities were submitted. In addition to the quarterfinalists, 213 legacy applicants from 2025 will also be eligible to win the award this year, and of that number, 111 are currently members of NAfME*. In total, more than 2,000 initial nominations were submitted. NAfME congratulates these exemplary, dedicated music educators.

The Music Educator Award recognizes current educators — kindergarten through college and public and private schools — who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools. The recipient will be recognized during GRAMMY Week 2026, which takes place ahead of the 2026 GRAMMYs, officially known as the 68th GRAMMY Awards.

The thirteenth honoree will also be flown to Los Angeles to attend the 68th GRAMMY Awards® and a range of GRAMMY Week events. The nine additional finalists will receive a $1,000 honorarium, and the schools of all 10 finalists will receive matching grants. Additionally, 15 semifinalists will receive a $500 honorarium with matching school grants. The Music Educator Award program, including the honorariums and matching school grants, is made possible by the generosity of the Chuck Lorre Family Foundation. The National Association for Music Education supports this program through outreach to music education supporters, along with the American Choral Directors Association, NAMM Foundation, and National Education Association.

Semifinalists will be announced later this year.

Ten of the previous twelve GRAMMY Music Educator honorees, Kent Knappenberger, Jared Cassedy, Phillip Riggs, Keith Hancock, Melissa Salguero, Jeffery Redding, Mickey Smith Jr., Pamela Dawson, Annie Ray, and Adrian Maclin—the 2025 GRAMMY Music Educator Award recipient—are NAfME members. The 2021 GRAMMY Music Educator Award recipient is Jeffrey Murdock, associate professor of music at the University of Arkansas, and the 2022 GRAMMY Music Educator Award recipient is Stephen Cox, band director at Eastland High School in Eastland, Texas.

Learn more about the Music Educator Award^TM process.

Below is a list of NAfME members who have been named quarterfinalists for the 2026 Music Educator Award. Click here for the full list of 200 quarterfinalists and 214 legacy applicants.

2026 GRAMMY Music Educator Award Quarterfinalists who are NAfME members

Nathaniel Haskew	Albertville Middle School	Albertville	Alabama
Shane Colquhoun	Alabama State University	Montgomery	Alabama
Morgan Luttig	University of Alabama	Tuscaloosa	Alabama
Kelly Rentz	Colony High School	Palmer	Alaska
Nathan Johnston	Casteel High School	Queen Creek	Arizona
Katherine Findlay	Meadow Park Elementary School	Irvine	California
Valerie Vinnard	Cesar Chavez Elementary	Long Beach	California
Johanna Gamboa-Kroesen	University of California Los Angeles	Los Angeles	California
Francisco Hernandez	Monte Vista Elementary School	West Covina	California
Joshua Race	Fountain-Fort Carson High School	Fountain	Colorado
Sarah Gleason	New Canaan High School	New Canaan	Connecticut
Patrick Smith	Cooperative Arts and Humanities Magnet High School	New Haven	Connecticut
Amanda Hanzlik	Edwin O. Smith High School	Storrs	Connecticut
Anthony Ferreira	Suffield High School	West Suffield	Connecticut
Angela Guira	Bartow High School	Bartow	Florida
Roberto Vidal	Eagles Landing Middle School	Boca Raton	Florida
Carlos Redman	Stranahan High School	Fort Lauderdale	Florida
Dr. Janet Duguay-Kirsten	Dante B. Fascell Elementary	Miami	Florida
Katie Grace Miller	Lake George Elementary	Orlando	Florida
Oliver Diez	Palmetto Elementary School	Pinecrest	Florida
Brett Bawcum	University of Georgia	Athens	Georgia
Rebecca Atkins	University of Georgia	Athens	Georgia
Adria Smith	Bear Creek Middle School	Fairburn	Georgia
Alisha Bowden	West Jackson Middle School	Hoschton	Georgia
Vincent Sneed	Central Gwinnett High School	Lawrenceville	Georgia
Mindy Forehand	Ola High School	McDonough	Georgia
Barbara Baker	McIntosh High School	Peachtree City	Georgia
Chad Haruo Uyehara	Moanalua Middle School	Honolulu	Hawai‘i
Larry VanMersbergen	IC Catholic Prep High School	Elmhurst	Illinois
Michael Sliwinski	Nazareth Academy	La Grange Park	Illinois
Peter SampsonY	Whiteland Community High School	Whiteland	Indiana
Ashley Albert	Brunswick High School	Brunswick	Maine
Otis Eldridge	Hamilton Elementary Middle School	Baltimore City	Maryland
James Dorsey	Rockledge Elementary School	Bowie	Maryland
Sidney Clarke-Lequerique	Richard Montgomery High School	Rockville	Maryland
Gracie Elswick	Salisbury Middle School	Salisbury	Maryland
Christopher Rivelli	Boston Arts Academy	Boston	Massachusetts
Margaret McKenna	Boston Latin School	Boston	Massachusetts
Michael Coelho	Ipswich High School	Ipswich	Massachusetts
Jessica Billings-White	Lexington Public Schools	Lexington	Massachusetts
Rachel Jayson	Lexington High School	Lexington	Massachusetts
Jonathan Plouffe	Thurgood Marshall Middle School	Lynn	Massachusetts
Lisa Linde	Newton South High School	Newton	Massachusetts
Michael Lapomardo	Shrewsbury High School	Shrewsbury	Massachusetts
Kevin McDonald	Wellesley High School	Wellesley	Massachusetts
David Schumacher	Pentucket Regional Middle/High School	West Newbury	Massachusetts
Shannan Hibbard	Wayne State University	Detroit	Michigan
Tom Torrento	Grosse Pointe North High School	Grosse Pointe Woods	Michigan
Micah Volz	St. Clair High School	St. Clair	Michigan
Joshua Sorenson	Janesville-Waldorf-Pemberton Junior/Senior High School	Janesville	Minnesota
Karen Howard	University of St. Thomas	St. Paul	Minnesota
Alex Kolster	Raytown High School	Raytown	Missouri
James Henry	University of Missouri – St. Louis	St. Louis	Missouri
Karlie Sines	Holdrege Middle School	Holdrege	Nebraska
Lisa Screeton	Ed Von Tobel Middle School	Las Vegas	Nevada
Jessie Mersinger	New Brunswick High School	New Brunswick	New Jersey
Jordan Peters	Dr. E. Alma Flagg School	Newark	New Jersey
David Buckle	Jonas Salk Middle School	Old Bridge	New Jersey
Elisabeth Sato	Martin Luther King Intermediate School	Piscataway	New Jersey
David Westawski	West Windsor-Plainsboro High School South	Princeton Junction	New Jersey
Stephanie Reyes	New Mexico State University	Las Cruces	New Mexico
Michael Blostein	Averill Park High School	Averill Park	New York
Antoine Dolberry	P.S. 103 Hector Fontanez School	Bronx	New York
Alice Tsui	New Bridges Elementary	Brooklyn	New York
Luis Ingels	Candor Elementary School	Candor	New York
Joseph Ianaconi	Chateaugay Central School	Chateaugay	New York
Eric Rubinstein	Nazareth University	Rochester	New York
Paul Caputo	Syosset High School	Syosset	New York
Kaitlyn Koch	Waterford-Halfmoon Junior/Senior High School	Waterford	New York
Michael Henderson	Chase Middle School	Forest City	North Carolina
Amy Stovall	Gray’s Creek High School	Hope Mills	North Carolina
Alan Sturdivant	Monroe High School	Monroe	North Carolina
Marc Lumley	Valle Crucis School	Sugar Grove	North Carolina
Paul Glader	Bethel-Tate Middle School	Bethel	Ohio
Amy Rist	Jackson Middle School	Grove City	Ohio
Katie Silcott	Olentangy Shanahan Middle School	Lewis Center	Ohio
Shelli Boes	General Johnnie Wilson Middle School	Lorain	Ohio
Dustin Wiley	Firelands High School	Oberlin	Ohio
Brett Keith	Northern Bedford County Middle/High School	Loysburg	Pennsylvania
Deanna Grandstaff	Cecil Intermediate School	McDonald	Pennsylvania
Nick Barthen	Moon Area High School	Moon Township	Pennsylvania
Adam Nobile	Big Spring High School	Newville	Pennsylvania
Joseph Smith	Reading Senior High School	Reading	Pennsylvania
Cassandra Eisenreich	Slippery Rock University	Slippery Rock	Pennsylvania
Glenn Cowen	Upper Moreland High School	Willow Grove	Pennsylvania
Chloe Spitzer	Camp Road Middle School	Charleston	South Carolina
Michael Lloyd	South Florence High School	Florence	South Carolina
Jessie Marie Haynes	Catawba Ridge High School	Fort Mill	South Carolina
Arlyn Mills	Dorman High School	Roebuck	South Carolina
Nikki Belch	West-Oak Middle School	Westminster	South Carolina
Jason Groon	Harrisburg High School	Harrisburg	South Dakota
Alec Powell	Lone Peak High School	Highland	Utah
Sam Noyce	Thomas Jefferson Jr. High School	Kearns	Utah
Bill Podolski	H-B Woodlawn Secondary Program	Arlington	Virginia
Elizabeth Weikle	Monticello High School	Charlottesville	Virginia
Mary Letson	Indian River High School	Chesapeake	Virginia
Tiffany Hitz	Robinson Secondary School	Fairfax	Virginia
James Johnson	Armstrong/John Marshall High School	Richmond	Virginia
James Reddan	Central Washington University	Ellensburg	Washington
Rachel Lake	Ilwaco High School	Ilwaco	Washington
Sarah Berglund	Richland High School	Richland	Washington
Cuauhtemoc Escobedo	Eckstein Middle School	Seattle	Washington
Austin Campbell	Logan High School	Logan	West Virginia
Alvin Simpson	West Liberty University	West Liberty	West Virginia
Shelly Weber	Kettle Moraine Middle School	Dousman	Wisconsin
Ben Jaeger	Vel Phillips Memorial High School	Madison	Wisconsin
Ian Melrose	Central Heights Middle School	Sun Prairie	Wisconsin

2026 GRAMMY Music Educator Award Legacy Applicants who are NAfME members

Amber Yates	Thompson Middle School	Alabaster	Alabama
Taylor Cash	Albertville High School	Albertville	Alabama
Matt Martindale	Shelby County High School	Columbiana	Alabama
Jonathan Powell	West End High School	Walnut Grove	Alabama
Christopher Lubken	Robert Service High School	Anchorage	Alaska
Michelle Nielsen	Diamond Canyon School	Anthem	Arizona
Patrick Aguayo	Rolling Hills Middle School	Los Gatos	California
Candace Love	August Boeger Middle School	San Jose	California
Kate Margrave	Pine Creek High School	Colorado Springs	Colorado
Abigail Martinez	Erie Middle School	Erie	Colorado
Rachel Waddell	Colorado State University	Fort Collins	Colorado
Katanna Linn	Highlands Ranch High School	Highlands Ranch	Colorado
James Minnix	Central Connecticut State University	New Britain	Connecticut
Joshua Krohn	Brent Elementary School	Washington	DC
Jonathan Mracko	Postlethwait Middle School	Camden-Wyoming	Delaware
Craig Uppercue	Volusia County Schools	DeLand	Florida
Erin Kronzek	Unity School	Delray Beach	Florida
William Molineaux	The Osceola County School for the Arts	Kissimmee	Florida
Cindy Ellis	Miami Arts Studio 6-12 at Zelda Glazer	Miami	Florida
Jennifer Jimenez	South Miami Sr. High School	Miami	Florida
Stefanie Sagaro	Academy for Innovative Education Charter School	Miami Springs	Florida
Bernie Hendricks, Jr.	Ocoee High School	Ocoee	Florida
Allen Venezio	East River High School	Orlando	Florida
Michael Antmann	Freedom High School	Orlando	Florida
Daniel Beilman	Oak Park School	Sarasota	Florida
Ernesta Chicklowski	Roosevelt Elementary School	Tampa	Florida
Jared Duncan	DeKalb School of the Arts	Avondale Estates	Georgia
Victoria Warnet	Columbus State University	Columbus	Georgia
Anthony Pickard	Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. High School	Lithonia	Georgia
Lenae Rose	Morgan County High School	Madison	Georgia
Donna Clark	Miguel Juarez Middle School	Waukegan	Illinois
Michael Richardson	Perry Meridian High School	Indianapolis	Indiana
Aleshia Shouse	Christian Academy of Indiana	New Albany	Indiana
Alex Underwood	Hays High School	Hays	Kansas
Curtis Mulvenon	Shawnee Mission West High School	Overland Park	Kansas
Cindy Reynolds	Sacred Heart of Jesus Catholic School	Shawnee	Kansas
Lawrence McCrobie	Valley High School	Louisville	Kentucky
Jeremy Cole	Southern Middle School	Somerset	Kentucky
Ryan Geary	Sanford High School	Sanford	Maine
Brandi Jason	Liberty High School	Eldersburg	Maryland
Makynzie Barton	Elkton High School	Elkton	Maryland
Kellie Harvey	Fruitland Primary School	Fruitland	Maryland
Kathleen McCarthy	Attleboro High School	Attleboro	Massachusetts
Natalie Sheeler	Sturgis Charter Public School	Hyannis	Massachusetts
Sarah Labrie	Lexington High School	Lexington	Massachusetts
Korey Bruno	Westfield High School	Westfield	Massachusetts
Matthew Shephard	Meridian Early College High School	Sanford	Michigan
Joe DeLisi	Chisago Lakes High School	Lindström	Minnesota
Cherie Bowe	Pascagoula High School	Pascagoula	Mississippi
Bobby Helms	Copiah-Lincoln Community College	Wesson	Mississippi
Daniel Gutierrez	Nixa High School	Nixa	Missouri
Stephen Rew	Raymore-Peculiar High School	Peculiar	Missouri
Christopher Weddel	Fremont High School	Fremont	Nebraska
Chris Pierson	Chaparral High School	Las Vegas	Nevada
Robert West	Clark High School	Las Vegas	Nevada
Stephen Blanco	Las Vegas High School	Las Vegas	Nevada
Eric Laprade	The College of New Jersey	Ewing	New Jersey
Alex Sieira	Harrison High School	Harrison	New Jersey
Jessie Mersinger	New Brunswick High School	New Brunswick	New Jersey
Christopher Henke	Kittatinny Regional High School	Newton	New Jersey
Joseph Flores	Mesa Middle School	Roswell	New Mexico
Kelly Seymour	Ballston Spa Central School District	Ballston Spa	New York
Erin McConnell	Camilus Middle School	Camillus	New York
Nicole Davidson	Susan E. Wiley Elementary School	Copiague	New York
Andrew Bennett	Fredonia High School	Fredonia	New York
Marc Ratner	Mineola High School	Garden City Park	New York
Kokoe Tanaka-Suwan	Purchase and Parsons Memorial Elementary Schools	Harrison	New York
Justin Peterson	Middle School 67Q Louis Pasteur	Little Neck	New York
Andrew Pease	Hartwick College	Oneonta	New York
Erin Althen	Westhill High School	Syracuse	New York
Regan Eudy	Central Elementary School	Albemarle	North Carolina
Emily Golden	East Burke High School	Connelly Springs	North Carolina
Richard Butler	Jack Britt High School	Fayetteville	North Carolina
Donald Walter	Northwest Guilford High School	Greensboro	North Carolina
Sarah Fulton	Kings Mountain High School	Kings Mountain	North Carolina
Aria Westbrook	Hawfields Middle School	Mebane	North Carolina
Jeremy Overbeck	Century High School	Bismarck	North Dakota
David Roth	Lakeside High School	Ashtabula	Ohio
Eric Bable	Crestview High School	Columbiana	Ohio
Bryce Werntz	Oak Hill High School	Oak Hill	Ohio
Amir Jones	Thomas W. Harvey High School	Painesville	Ohio
Larry Kennon	Troy Christian Schools	Troy	Ohio
Justin Britt	Kingston Public Schools	Kingston	Oklahoma
Adam Mewhorter	Southmoore High School	Moore	Oklahoma
Angela McKenna	Classen School of Advanced Studies at Northeast High School	Oklahoma City	Oklahoma
Maura Saint	Blackhawk High School	Beaver Falls	Pennsylvania
Evelyn Stohlman	Bishop Shanahan High School	Downingtown	Pennsylvania
William Steadman	General McLane High School	Edinboro	Pennsylvania
Lou Ribar	Lenape Elementary School	Ford City	Pennsylvania
Bobi-Jean Alexander	Seneca Valley Senior High School	Harmony	Pennsylvania
Cyndi Mancini	Montour High School	McKees Rocks	Pennsylvania
Samantha Leali	Shenango Junior/Senior High School	New Castle	Pennsylvania
Mark Thomas	Upper Perkiomen	Pennsburg	Pennsylvania
Elizabeth Nardone	EM Stanton	Philadelphia	Pennsylvania
Kathleen Amabile	Elk Lake Junior/Senior High School	Springville	Pennsylvania
Jason Falvo	Waynesburg Central Elementary School	Waynesburg	Pennsylvania
Brian Henson	Walnut Grove High School	Prosper	Texas
Kate Wisbey	Charlottesville Catholic School	Charlottesville	Virginia
Sonja Jewell	Loudoun Country Day School	Leesburg	Virginia
Meghan Wagner	Auburn Riverside High School	Auburn	Washington
Ethan Chessin	Camas High School	Camas	Washington
Sarah Hart	Islander Middle School	Mercer Island	Washington
Mike Scott	Columbia Basin College	Pasco	Washington
Nathan Rodahl	Port Angeles High School	Port Angeles	Washington
Elliot Weeks	Seattle Preparatory School	Seattle	Washington
Melanie Gunn	Whitman Middle School	Seattle	Washington
Leslie Riedel	Capital High School	Charleston	West Virginia
Kimberly Meader	Green Bay Preble High School	Green Bay	Wisconsin
Mike Fedyszyn	Riverview Middle School	Plymouth	Wisconsin
Jason Canfield	Prescott High School	Prescott	Wisconsin
Joe Finnegan	DC Everest Senior High School	Weston	Wisconsin

* This number reflects those whose memberships were current at the time of this announcement and is subject to change.

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The National Association for Music Education (NAfME) provides a number of forums for the sharing of information and opinion, including blogs and postings on our website, articles and columns in our magazines and journals, and postings to our Amplify member portal. Unless specifically noted, the views expressed in these media do not necessarily represent the policy or views of the Association, its officers, or its employees.