The GRAMMY Foundation Announces 2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools

The GRAMMY Foundation announced today that 12 schools nationwide have been selected as GRAMMY Signature Schools (www.grammyintheschools.com) for 2014 and have been awarded cash grants totaling $58,500. Created in 1998, the GRAMMY Signature Schools program recognizes the top U.S. public high schools that make an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year.

Each of the 12 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 $6,000. The two remaining Gold schools will each receive $5,000 and the two remaining GRAMMY Signature Schools recipients will each receive a grant of $2,000 to benefit their music programs. Seven 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 Converse, the Hot Topic Foundation and Journeys. 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 85 schools to date have received the GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Award, with grants totaling $170,000.

"The impact of our GRAMMY Signature Schools program is truly significant," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation. "Through this GRAMMY in the Schools initiative, the GRAMMY Foundation is able to provide critical financial resources and bring attention to the excellence of music programs in schools across the United States. This program also helped inspire the Music Educator Award presented by The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation that honors music's unsung heroes - the teachers who encourage music's next generation."

"Ford is proud to once again partner with the GRAMMY Foundation to support music education in schools," said Pamela Alexander, director of Community Development for Ford Motor Company Fund.

2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools:

2014 National GRAMMY Signature School ($6,000)
Diamond Bar High School - Diamond Bar, Calif.

2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools Gold ($5,000 each)
Las Vegas Academy of the Arts - Las Vegas
Mira Costa High School - Manhattan Beach, Calif.

2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools ($2,000 each)
Cherry Creek High School - Greenwood Village, Colo.
Northwood High School - Irvine, Calif.

2014 GRAMMY Signature Schools Enterprise Award ($5,500 each)
Ashland High School - Ashland, Wis.
Bend High School - Bend, Ore.
Mount Vernon High School - Alexandria, Va.
Northland Preparatory Academy - Flagstaff, Ariz.
Savannah Arts Academy - Savannah, Ga.
West Valley High School - Fairbanks, Alaska
Winnetonka High School - Kansas City, Mo.

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 at 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 School 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 are partnering to present their second annual Music Educator Award. Open to current U.S. music teachers in K through college, the Music Educator Award will be presented at the Special Merit Awards ceremony during GRAMMY Week 2015. To nominate a teacher for the second annual 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 Schools" on Facebook and follow @GRAMMYFdn on Twitter and Instagram.