Keith Hancock
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Keith Hancock named 2017 Music Educator Award recipient

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Southern California music teacher recognized for his significant and lasting contributions to the field of music education
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
May 15, 2017 - 2:36 am

Keith Hancock of Tesoro High School in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif., has been announced as the recipient of the 2017 Music Educator Award presented by The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation. As the 2017 honoree, Hancock will attend the 59th Annual GRAMMY Awards on Sunday, Feb. 12 and attend a range of GRAMMY Week events. He will also receive a $10,000 honorarium. 

California choir teacher honored with Grammy Music Educator Award

Hancock has taught choral music for 15 years at Tesoro High School, where he directs more than 250 students in five curricular and four extra-curricular ensembles, and oversees the music production/audio engineering program. Last year, Hancock was selected as a Music Educator Award finalist and he was recently awarded as the Secondary Vocal Music Teacher of the Year for Orange County, California. 

The Tesoro High School music program was chosen as one of 13 GRAMMY Signature Schools nationwide for 2015. Under his direction, the Tesoro choirs have performed to rave reviews in Spain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, England, and Ireland, as well as at Carnegie Hall in New York. In addition, ensembles under his direction have won two Golden State Choral Competitions and three Barbershop Harmony Society high school quartet championships. 

A former faculty member at the Hall-Musco Conservatory of Music at Chapman University, Hancock has earned three degrees (summa cum laude). As a performer, he has sung at Carnegie Hall, the Hollywood Bowl, the Orange County Performing Arts Center, and with the Cypress Pops Orchestra, in addition to performing at various venues around Europe and Asia.

In addition to Hancock, nine music teachers were announced as finalists for the Music Educator Award. The nine finalists will each receive a $1,000 honorarium, and the schools of all 10 finalists will receive matching grants.

View A Complete List Of 2017 Music Educator Award Finalists

Nominations and applications for the 2018 Music Educator Award are now open via www.grammymusicteacher.com.

 

 

Keith Hancock at the 59th GRAMMY Awards

Keith Hancock, 2017 Music Educator Award recipient

Photo: Jason LaVeris/FilmMagic

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Keith Hancock: Music Educator Award "Means The World To Me"

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The Southern California-based music teacher makes his case for the importance of music in schools and gives a shout-out to his mentors
Tim McPhate
GRAMMYs
Oct 6, 2017 - 12:41 pm

It goes without saying: Keith Hancock, the Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum's 2017 Music Educator Award recipient, is a big believer in the benefits of music education.

Keith Hancock On Funding The Arts, Music Mentors

And there is plenty of research to back him up. Indeed, a variety of studies point to music having a profound effect on children, from helping to raise IQs, increasing vocabulary and reading skills, and boosting reading and mathematics aptitude.

"Funding the arts is such a crucial part of the well-rounded child. Even Congress has come out and said that," said Hancock, who will be among the Academy's Special Merit Awards recipients honored during "GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends," airing on PBS on Oct. 13. "So it's our duty as public citizens to support public education and specifically music education. It really helps to feed the whole child. [For] some students, this is the way they connect to campus: being involved in a music program."

Hancock, who has taught choral music for more than 15 years at Tesoro High School in Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif, directs more than 250 students across various ensembles, in addition to overseeing the school's music production/audio engineering program. In paying music education forward and making a difference in his students' lives, Hancock is thankful for the tutelage he received from some of his own teachers.

"My university professor, Dr. William Hall from Chapman University, who was one of the leading choral conductors in the world, really mentored me musically and taught me how to teach music," says Hancock. "And my high school music educator, Carlita Hutton, from Brethren Christian high school, showed me really how to teach people."

Tune in to "GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends" on PBS on Oct. 13 at 9 p.m. on PBS. In addition to Hancock, honorees will include Lifetime Achievement Award recipients Sly Stone, Charley Pride and Shirley Caesar, and Trustees Award recipient Thom Bell. Artists scheduled to pay tribute to the honorees include Andra Day, Dwight Yoakam and Kirk Franklin.

"GRAMMY Salute To Music Legends": Performers And Full Set List

 

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum's Music Educator Award

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum's Music Educator Award

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2020 Music Educator Award Finalists Announced Recognizing 10 Top Teachers

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10 music teachers from across the country will receive cash honorariums with one award recipient to be announced during GRAMMY Week
GRAMMYs
Jan 6, 2020 - 6:00 am

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museuem have narrowed down a field of more than 3,300 initially nominated music teachers from across all 50 U.S. States to 10 finalists for the 2020 Music Educator Award. This year's 10 finalists come from 10 cities across nine states. Initial nominations were submitted from all 50 states.

The annual Music Educator Award recognizes teachers 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. Congratulations to this year's 10 finalists:

  • Elizabeth Bennett - Buffalo Grove High School, Buffalo Grove, Ill.
  • Stephen Cox - Eastland High School, Eastland, Texas
  • Victor de los Santos - Santa Ana High School, Santa Ana, Calif.
  • Geoffrey Gould - Swift River Elementary School, Belchertown, Mass.
  • Elizabeth Hering - Churchill High School, Livonia, Mich.
  • Jason Majerczak - Drexel Hill Middle School, Drexel Hill, Pa.
  • Chris Maunu - Arvada West High School, Arvada, Colo.
  • Lynne Ruda, Lancaster High School, Lancaster, N.Y.
  • Mickey Smith Jr. - Maplewood Middle School, Sulphur, La.
  • Kokoe Tanaka-Suwan - Bronx Global Learning Institute for Girls, Bronx, N.Y.

Each year, one recipient is selected from the 10 finalists and recognized for their remarkable impact on students' lives. The seventh annual honoree will be flown to Los Angeles to attend the 62nd Annual 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. The remaining 15 semifinalists will receive a $500 honorarium with matching school grants.

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. In addition, the American Choral Directors Association, National Association for Music Education, NAMM Foundation, and National Education Association support this program through outreach to their constituencies.

Nominations for the 2021 Music Educator Award are now open at www.grammymusicteacher.com. The award is open to current U.S. music teachers, and anyone can nominate a teacher —students, parents, friends, colleagues, community members, school deans, and administrators. Teachers are also able to nominate themselves, and nominated teachers are notified and invited to fill out an application.

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The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum's Music Educator Award

The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum's Music Educator Award

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2020 Music Educator Award Quarterfinalists Announced

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189 music teachers from across the U.S. have been selected out of over three thousand nominations as quarterfinalists for the annual honor presented by the Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum, with support from Ford Motor Company Fund
Nate Hertweck
GRAMMYs
Jun 11, 2019 - 4:04 pm

The benefits of music education are as wide-ranging as they are long-lasting, and it all starts with the passion and dedication of those who choose to teach. In this spirit, the Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum have announced this year's quarterfinalists for the Music Educator Award. The 189 teachers selected come from 179 cities across the U.S. and are in the running to recieve cash honorariums, with generous support and resources provided by the Ford Motor Company Fund. 

Read the full list of 2020 Music Educator Award quarterfinalists

Established to recognize current educators from kindergarted through college in public or private shools, 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. Last year's winner was Dr. Jeffrey Redding of West Orange High School in Winter Garden, Fla. 

This year's seventh annual honoree will be flown to Los Angeles to attend the 62nd annual GRAMMY Awards and a full lineup of GRAMMY Week events. The nine finalists will be awarded a $1,000 honorarium, and the scholls of all 10 finalists will receive matching grants. Additionally, 15 semifinalists will receive a $500 honorarium with matching school grants, all made pde possible by the GRAMMY Museum's Education Chamption Ford Motor Company Fund. 

The next step for this outstanding group of music educators is to await the semifinalist annoucement in September. The award is open to current U.S. music teachers, and anyone can nominate a teacher—students, parents, friends, colleagues, community members, school deans, and administrators. Teachers are also able to nominate themselves, and nominated teachers are notified and invited to fill out an application. 

For more information, visit www.grammymusicteacher.com.  

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GRAMMY In The Schools Live!

Photo: Jesse Grant/Getty Images

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GRAMMY In The Schools Live! 2019 Celebrates The Power Of Music & Educators

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The lively GRAMMY Week event celebrated its 10th year with performances from GRAMMY Camp alumni and moving speeches from Music Educator Award honoree Jeffery Redding
Ana Monroy Yglesias
GRAMMYs
Feb 8, 2019 - 7:32 pm

On Thursday, Feb. 7, The Montalbán in Hollywood was filled with music, laughter, cheers and plenty of inspiring stories as GRAMMY In The Schools Live! celebrated its 10th annual GRAMMY Week event. The evening's music was provided by the talented GRAMMY Camp Alumni Band, who not only wowed the packed theater with show-stopping covers but poignantly answered high school students' questions about being an artist in the real world.

One of the highlights of the night was meeting Music Educator Award honoree, choir teacher Jeffery Redding, and hearing his passion for music and how uses it to inspire his students at West Orange High School in Florida. "Your job is to maximize the gifts that have been given to you," he said during his speech.

GRAMMY In The Schools Live! 2019

The band brought together nine young musicians from across the U.S., all of whom were once aspiring musicians honing their skills at one of the GRAMMY Museum's student-focused offerings: GRAMMY Camp, GRAMMY Camp—Jazz Session, or the GRAMMY Museum Summer Session. In addition to tearing up the stage covering hits from the likes of GRAMMY winners Justin Timberlake and The Weeknd, they answered students' questions, fielded by David Sears, the museum's Executive Education Director.

The talented group showcased not only their musical prowess on stage, but also their insight into how to successfully navigate the music industry. Luca Mendoza, a pianist and college sophomore, poignantly answered a question about balancing music, school and social life.

"I think the one thing that has stayed with me is to really listen to myself and be honest with myself with what I need in the moment. It's really easy to get caught up in 'work, work, work,'" Mendoza said. "It's easy to forget that that’s what this is really about, about playing music for people, to connect with people."

These artists are shining examples of the power of music education to touch lives and allow young people the platform on which to explore their unique identities and skillsets. Programs like GRAMMY Camp, a five-day summer intensive with eight tracks spanning potential music industry careers, from audio engineering to vocal performance to music journalism, offer participants practical experience and advice to help them dive deeper into their passions, and allows them to connect with other young aspiring artists.

Thoughtful educators also play a huge role in helping students to find their joy—Music Educator Award honoree Redding is one such teacher. A powerful segment from "CBS This Morning" offered a look into how the choir teacher has made a meaningful impact on all his students.

"I stand here humbly as a music educator here to serve," Redding declared as he took the stage. After sharing how music had helped both him and so many others he's worked with overcome live's challenges, he encouraged the students in the audience to share their talents with the world. "Your job is to maximize the gifts that have been given to you."

When we asked Redding why music education was so important to him, his passion was palpable in every word.

"Music education touches and changes lives, it inspires. In a classroom it provides a safety from the world. There's a song for everything that you're going through. It teaches community…it deals with vulnerability, with a transparent heart," Redding told us.

As the recipient Of the 2019 Music Educator Award he is recognized for his "significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education" and will receive a $10,000 honorarium, plus a matching grant for his school.

These programs would of course not be possible without one of the GRAMMY Museum's longest-standing partners, The Ford Motor Company Fund. We also spoke to Pamela Alexander, Director of Community Development for the Fund, about what the partnership means to her.

"Music education is an opportunity for a student that has the talent, or even just the interest, to really express themselves and explore themselves and grow as a person. It also means achievement, because know that schools with music education programs have higher graduation rates and higher test scores," Alexander explained.

Nominations for the for the 2020 Music Educator Award are open until March 15. Click here to nominate a well-deserving teacher in your community.

The GRAMMY Camp 2019 summer session in L.A. is also currently accepting applications until March 31. For more information, click here.

Finally, GRAMMY Week concludes this Sunday on Feb. 10 with the 61st GRAMMY Awards—be sure to catch the show live on CBS, beginning at 5:00 p.m. PT from the STAPLES Center.

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