Benton Intermediate School band director Cory Craig recently received news that is music to her ears. She is among the quarterfinalists chosen for the 2022 Music Educator Award presented by the Recording Academy and GRAMMY Museum.

The Music Educator Award recognizes current educators who have made a significant and lasting contribution to the field of music education and who demonstrate a commitment to the broader cause of maintaining music education in schools.

Craig’s love for music began in middle school while she was in foster care. The experience was life-changing.

“This became my new escape as I went through foster care and counseling for the trauma we endured,” Craig said. “I tasted success for the first time and it overflowed into my other subjects, going from a failing student to an ‘A’ student. I also knew that year, my seventh grade year, I must become a band director one day to help give others this wonderful escape and experience.”

Craig fulfilled that dream, becoming a music educator in 2014, and now leads the Benton Intermediate School band program.

Semifinalists and finalists for the Music Educator Award will be announced in September, all of whom will receive honorariums and matching school grants. The eighth annual honoree and winner of the Music Educator Award will attend the 64th Annual GRAMMY Awards in Los Angeles and participate in GRAMMY Week events.