55th Annual CMA Awards to Honor Music Teachers of Excellence
Thirty of the nation's most dedicated music teachers will be in attendance.
When the 55th annual CMA Awards take place on November 10, it won’t just be country stars getting honored for their achievements. The Country Music Association also plans to recognize heroes of a different sort — the nation’s dedicated music teachers.
Through the CMA Foundation’s 2020 Music Teachers of Excellence program, a group of 30 inspiring music educators from across the U.S. will be celebrated for their hard work in the last year. Selecting those who’ve used music to make a major impact on students, that hard work has never been easy, but has only become more difficult in light of virtual learning, social distancing and other COVID-19 changes. So on CMA Awards night, these teachers will get a night off.
Each one will receive tickets to attend the glitzy ceremony and TV broadcast, take part in a pre-show reception at Bridgestone Arena and also get a medallion signifying their accomplishment, just like the rest of the night’s winners. Each one’s principal will be invited as well, so they can get some extra brownie points from the boss.
“Day-in and day-out these incredible educators play an integral role in achieving and furthering the CMA Foundation’s mission of creating equitable access to music education programs across the United States,” says Tiffany Kerns, CMA Foundation Executive Director. “They dedicate their time, energy and resources to serving and enriching our next generation, ensuring that each student is encouraged and celebrated. We are thrilled to be able to put the spotlight on these 30 Music Teachers of Excellence who so often shine the light on others. We cannot wait to welcome our special guests to this year’s CMA Awards for a night full of celebration and Country Music!”
With the CMA Foundation now celebrating its 10th anniversary, the Music Teachers of Excellence program celebrates excellence in public school music education across U.S. K-12 classrooms. Since 2016, the CMA Foundation has invested more than $700,000 towards Music Teachers of Excellence to ensure music educators have the support and funding needed to create a thriving program within their school and community.
If you know a music teacher who should be singled out by the program, applications for the 2022 class of Music Teachers of Excellence can be found at CMAfoundation.org in January.
The 55th annual CMA Awards will be hosted for the first time by Luke Bryan, airing LIVE from Nashville’s Bridgestone arena November 10 at 8/7c on ABC.
