More Than Half of the 2021 Music Educator Award Quarterfinalists Are NAfME Members

More Than Half of the 2021 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 216 quarterfinalists for the 2021 GRAMMY Music Educator Award™, and of that number, 118 are currently members of the National Association for Music Education (NAfME)*. In all, nearly 2,000 initial nominations of teachers from 199 cities were submitted. In addition to the quarterfinalists, 91 legacy applicants from 2020 will also be eligible to win the award this year. From elementary general music teachers to band directors, choral conductors, string teachers, and college professors, NAfME congratulates these exemplary, dedicated music educators.

The Music Educator Award was established to “recognize current educators from kindergarten through college in public or private schools, the Music Educator Award honors teachers who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools. Each year, a recipient is chosen from 10 finalists and recognized for their remarkable impact on students’ lives.” A joint partnership and presentation of The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum, the recipient will be recognized during GRAMMY^® Week 2021.

The 2021 recipient will also be flown to Los Angeles to attend the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards® ceremony and other 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, all made possible by the GRAMMY Museum’s Education Champion Ford Motor Company Fund.  The matching grants provided to the schools are made possible by the generosity and support of the GRAMMY Museum’s Education Champion Ford Motor Company Fund. The National Association for Music Education supports this program through outreach to music education supporters.

Semi-finalists will be announced in September.

All seven of the previous GRAMMY Music Educator honorees, Kent Knappenberger, Jared Cassedy, Phillip Riggs, Keith Hancock, Melissa Salguero, Jeffery Redding, and Mickey Smith Jr. are NAfME members.

Learn more about the Music Educator Award^TM process.

Below is a list of NAfME members who have been named quarterfinalists for the 2021 Music Educator Award. Click here for the full list of 216 quarterfinalists.

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

August 3, 2020. © National Association for Music Education (NAfME.org)