HSST Band Director, Gary Bernice, Selected as Quarter-Finalist for Grammy Music Educator Award!

May, 2013:

HSST Band Director, Gary Bernice was recently selected as one of 217 music educators in line for the first ever, Grammy Music Educator Award, which will be handed out at the Special Merit Awards Ceremony and Nominees Reception during GRAMMY Week 2014

A total of 217 music teachers from 195 cities across 45 states have been announced as quarter-finalists for the Music Educator Award presented by The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation. In total, more than 30,000 initial nominations were submitted from all 50 states.

The Music Educator Award was established to recognize current educators (K – college, 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. A joint partnership and presentation of The Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Foundation, this special award will have its inaugural presentation at the Special Merit Awards Ceremony and Nominees
Reception honoring recipients of the Lifetime Achievement Award, Trustee Award, Technical GRAMMY Award during GRAMMY Week 2014.

As announced on the 55th Annual GRAMMY Awards by President/CEO of The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Foundation Neil Portnow, TV and radio host/producer and GRAMMY Foundation Honorary Board Chair Ryan Seacrest, and six-time GRAMMY winner Justin Timberlake, the award was open to current United States music teachers, and anyone could nominate a teacher — students,
parents, friends, colleagues, community members, school deans and administrators.

One recipient will be selected from 10 finalists each year, and will be recognized for his/her remarkable impact on students’ lives. The winner will be flown to Los Angeles to accept the award, attend the GRAMMY Awards ceremony, and receive a $10,000 honorarium. The nine finalists will receive a $1,000 honorarium, and the schools of all 10 finalists also will receive matching grants.

Since joining the faculty at the High School of Science and Technology in 2007, Mr. Bernice has grown the band from 20 students to over 540 students for the upcoming 2013-14 school year.  99% of the students have never had any music instruction or played an instrument before joining the band. His students grow not only as musicians, but as leaders who take ownership for their own learning and actions. Ask any of his students and they will agree that this nomination is well-deserved.  Congratulations Gary!