District 204 High Schools Named Grammy Semifinalists

The Grammy Foundation has announced that Metea Valley, , and are among the 125 schools nationwide that have been selected as Grammy Signature Schools semifinalists for 2012. Finalists will be announced in mid-March and the selected schools will receive a custom award and a monetary grant ranging from $1,000 to $10,000 to benefit their music program.

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. Both Neuqua Valley and Waubonsie Valley have previously won multiple Grammy awards, including Neuqua Valley being recognized as the top music program the country.

"The Grammy Signature Schools program sustains excellence in music education by granting awards to public high school music programs in communities across the country," said Neil Portnow, President/CEO of The Recording Academy and the Grammy Foundation. "Each of these semifinalist schools should be commended for their commitment to keeping the arts in their curriculum for the long-term benefits of their students."

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. 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.