The following announcement is taken from the online edition of the Outer Banks Voice on October 24, 2021.
West Liberty University alumnus, Kyle Cook, director of the Outer Banks Chorus as well as the Western Branch Middle School (Chesapeake, Va.) Choirs, has been named a semifinalist in the 2022 GRAMMY Music Educator Award – one of 25 competitors in this national competition.
His selection was announced by The Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum, which noted that the award recognizes current educators who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the music education field and demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in the schools.
The semifinalists comprise a total of 25 music teachers from 24 cities across 16 states; the semifinalists were selected from more than 1,135 initial nominations submissions from 49 states.
The finalists for the 2022 Music Educator Award will be announced this December and the recipient will be recognized during GRAMMY Week 2022.
According to Grammy in the Schools website, the award honors teachers who play a critical role in teaching musical performance to students.
Ten finalists including one winner each year will be recognized at the end of the process. The winner will be flown to Los Angeles to attend the 63rd Annual GRAMMY Awards in early 2022, receive the Music Educator Award at a ceremony during GRAMMY Week, plus pick up a $10,000 personal honorarium. All finalists will receive a $1,000 honorarium, while semifinalists receive a $500 honorarium.
Cook graduated with a Music Education degree from WLU and went on to earn a masters degree from Ohio University.
