A Fayette County high school band director could be the fifth winner of the GRAMMY Music Educator Award and honored at the 2018 GRAMMY Awards ceremony.

Jack Jean, band director at Whitewater High, is among the 197 music teachers nationwide selected as quarterfinalists for the award presented by the Recording Academy and the GRAMMY Museum. Jean is one of eight music teachers from Georgia who are vying for the award, which honors teachers for their remarkable impact on students’ lives and music education in schools. The quarterfinalists span 187 cities from across 45 states plus Washington, D.C. More than 2,300 initial nominations were submitted from all 50 states.

The next step is the selection of 15 semifinalists, which will be announced in September. From the semifinalists, 10 finalists will be named, and one winner will be chosen. The winner will be flown to New York to attend the 60th annual GRAMMY Awards and a range of GRAMMY week events. All finalists will receive a $1,000 honorarium and matching grants for their schools, while semifinalists will receive a $500 honorarium with matching school grants.

The Music Educator Award was established to recognize current educators (kindergarten through college, public and private schools) 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 the schools.

The award is open to current U.S. music teachers, and anyone can nominate a teacher — students, parents, friends, colleagues, community members, school deans, and administrators. Teachers are also able to nominate themselves, and nominated teachers are notified and invited to fill out an application.