SANTA MONICA, Calif. (March 17, 2016) — The announced today that 13 U.S. schools have been selected as GRAMMYSignature Schools (www.grammyintheschools.com) for 2016 and have been awarded cash grants totaling $61,000. Created in 1998, the GRAMMY Signature Schools program recognizes top U.S. public high schools that make an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year.
More details from The Grammy Foundation (www.grammyfoundation.org):
Each of the 13 GRAMMY Signature Schools will receive a custom award and a monetary grant to benefit its music program. The top three schools are designated Gold recipients. The best of the Gold recipients is named the National GRAMMY Signature School and will receive $5,000. The two remaining Gold schools will each receive $3,500. Two additional GRAMMY Signature Schools recipients will each receive a grant of $2,500 to benefit their music programs. Eight schools will receive the Enterprise Award grant, which recognizes the efforts made by schools that are economically underserved. Each of the Enterprise Award schools will receive a grant in the amount of $5,500. The GRAMMY Signature Schools program is made possible in part through the generous support of the Ford Motor Company Fund.
The GRAMMY Foundation also presents the GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Award, an extension of the GRAMMY Signature Schools program in partnership with Brookfield Properties, Converse, Journeys, RBC Capital Markets, Hot Topic Foundation, and the Les Paul Foundation. Through this alliance, the GRAMMY Foundation identifies financially challenged public high school music programs to receive this award and a $2,000 grant. During the current fiscal year, approximately 150 schools to date have received the GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Award, with grants totaling $300,000.
“We created the GRAMMY Foundation’s GRAMMY Signature Schools initiative to highlight the excellent work being done through music programs at public high schools across the country, and since 1999, we have provided more than $1.3 million to close to 300 schools,” said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academyand the GRAMMY Foundation. “We are proud to offer these financial resources to augment what are often limited budgets, so that teachers may continue to provide the enriching and lasting benefits of a musical education to their students.”
“The Ford Motor Company Fund has been a longtime advocate for music programs in schools and our partnership with the GRAMMY Foundation has thrived because it matches financial support with excellence in music education,” said Pamela Alexander, director of community development for Ford Motor Company Fund.
2016 GRAMMY Signature Schools:
2016 National GRAMMY Signature School ($5,000)
Woodbridge High School – Irvine, Calif.
2016 GRAMMY Signature Schools Gold ($3,500 each)
Douglas Anderson School of the Arts – Jacksonville, Fla.
Metea Valley High School – Aurora, Ill.
2016 GRAMMY Signature Schools ($2,500 each)
Allen High School – Allen, Texas
Orange County School of the Arts – Santa Ana, Calif.
2016 GRAMMY Signature Schools Enterprise Award ($5,500 each)
Belgrade High School – Belgrade, Mont.
Boston Arts Academy – Boston
Charyl Stockwell Preparatory Academy – Brighton, Mich.
Florin High School – Sacramento, Calif.
Pearl-Cohn Entertainment Magnet High School – Nashville, Tenn.
Phil Campbell High School – Phil Campbell, Ala.
Portland High School – Portland, Maine
Spring High School – Spring, Texas
The selection process for GRAMMY Signature Schools begins each year in August when the GRAMMY Foundation mails notifications to more than 20,000 public high schools in districts large and small, urban, suburban and rural, requesting information about each school’s music program. Applications are completed and submitted online in October via www.grammyintheschools.com. After the applications are scored, finalists are identified and asked to submit additional documentation, such as recordings of school concerts, sample concert programs and repertoire, which is then reviewed by an independent blue-ribbon committee of top music educators and professionals to determine the schools that merit GRAMMY Signature Schools status.
The GRAMMY Foundation was established in 1988 to cultivate the understanding, appreciation and advancement of the contribution of recorded music to American culture. The Foundation accomplishes this mission through programs and activities that engage the music industry and cultural community as well as the general public. The Foundation works in partnership year-round with its founder, The Recording Academy, to bring national attention to important issues such as the value and impact of music and arts education and the urgency of preserving our rich cultural heritage. In recognition of the significant role of teachers in shaping their students’ musical experiences, The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation partnered to present their first Music Educator AwardTM in 2014. Open to current U.S. music teachers in kindergarten through college, the fourth annual Music Educator Award will be recognized during GRAMMY Week 2017. For more information about the Music Educator Award, please visit GRAMMYMusicTeacher.com. For more information about the Foundation, please visit www.grammyfoundation.org. For breaking news and exclusive content, please “like” GRAMMY in the Schoolson Facebook, follow the GRAMMY Foundation on Twitter (@GRAMMYFdn) and join us on Instagram (@GRAMMYFdn).
Ford Motor Company Fund and Community Services works with community and global partners to advance driving safety, education and community life. Ford Motor Company Fund has operated for more than 65 years with ongoing funding from Ford Motor Company. Ford Driving Skills for Life is free, interactive, hands-on safety training focused on skill development and driving techniques, while addressing inexperience, distractions and impaired driving. Innovation in education is encouraged through Ford Blue Oval Scholars, Ford Next Generation Learning and other inspiring programs that enhance high school learning and provide college scholarships and university grants. The Ford Volunteer Corps enlists more than 30,000 Ford employees and retirees each year to work on local projects that strengthen their communities and improve people’s lives in more than 40 countries around the world. For more information, visit community.ford.com.
