GRAMMY Signature School

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 THE GRAMMY FOUNDATION
ANNOUNCES

2012 GRAMMY® SIGNATURE SCHOOLS

Grants Awarded to 18 Top U.S. Public High Schools for Music Excellence Including 11 Enterprise Awards Granted to Economically Underserved Schools
Supported in part by Best Buy, Campbell's Labels For Education Program, the Ford Motor Company Fund, and Gibson Foundation
Special GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Awards Given Throughout The Year In Partnership With Best Buy Mobile

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (April 2, 2012)— The GRAMMY Foundation® (www.grammyfoundation.org) today announced that 18 schools nationwide have been selected as GRAMMY® Signature Schools (www.grammyintheschools.com) for 2012 and have been awarded cash grants totaling more than $100,000. Created in 1998, the GRAMMY Signature Schools program recognizes top U.S. public high schools that are making an outstanding commitment to music education during an academic school year. GRAMMY Signature Schools are made possible in part through the generous support of Best Buy, Campbell's Labels For Education program, the Ford Motor Company Fund, and Gibson Foundation.

In August 2010, the GRAMMY Foundation launched the GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Award, a new extension of the GRAMMY Signature Schools program in partnership with Best Buy Mobile. To celebrate the opening of new Best Buy Mobile stores, the GRAMMY Foundation identified deserving public high school music programs to receive the award and a $2,000 grant. During the past year, approximately 100 schools have received the GRAMMY Signature Schools Community Award, and total dollars granted were in excess of $200,000. For a list of schools, visit www.grammy.com.

"Our GRAMMY Signature Schools program is making a real difference in the lives of young people in public high school music programs across the country," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy® and the GRAMMY Foundation. "With the generous support of our partners, we've been able to grow this program's reach, and further the GRAMMY Foundation's commitment to fostering excellence in music education."

Each of the 18 GRAMMY Signature Schools will receive a custom award and a monetary grant to benefit its music program. The top six schools are designated Gold recipients. The best of the Gold recipients is named the National GRAMMY Signature School. The National GRAMMY Signature School will receive $15,000, and the five remaining Gold schools each will receive $5,000. One remaining GRAMMY Signature Schools recipient will receive a grant of $2,500 to benefit its music programs. In the Enterprise Award category, which recognizes efforts made by schools that are economically underserved, 11 schools will receive a grant of $5,500 each.

2012 GRAMMY Signature Schools:

2012 National GRAMMY Signature School ($15,000)

Douglas Anderson School of the Arts — Jacksonville, Fla.

2012 GRAMMY Signature Schools Gold ($5,000 each)

Flower Mound High School — Flower Mound, Texas

Green Valley High School — Henderson, Nev.

Las Vegas Academy of International Studies, Performing and Visual Arts —Las Vegas, Nev.

Prospect High School —Mount Prospect, Ill.

Westwood High School — Austin, Texas

The selection process for GRAMMY Signature Schools begins each year in August when the GRAMMY Foundation mails notification to more than 20,000 public high schools from 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 1989 to cultivate the understanding, appreciation and advancement of the contribution of recorded music to American culture —from the artistic and technical legends of the past to the still unimagined musical breakthroughs of future generations of music professionals. 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. Campbell's Labels For Education program is proud to be the official education partner of the GRAMMY in the Schools programs. For more information, please visit www.grammyintheschools.com. For breaking news and exclusive content, please like "GRAMMY in the Schools" on Facebook at www.facebook.com/grammyintheschools.