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.
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.