ETM-LA’s 17th Annual Benefit Gala Honors NBCUniversal’s Mike Knobloch, Music Teacher Juan Rodriguez and Why Not Incubator’s Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin

This year, the gala honored NBCUniversal’s Mike Knobloch, music teacher Juan Rodriguez and Why Not Incubator’s founder Dr. Jacqueline Sanderlin, each with a 2022 Shining Star Award. The event raised funds to continue supporting music programs in Los Angeles schools. The evening was hosted by Recording Academy CEO Harvey Mason Jr. and included ETM-LA choir students. 

Rodriguez was the first shining star to be honored during the event. His high school music teacher and mentor, Dan Taguchi, presented him with the award. Rodriguez is the Instrumental Music Director at Frost Middle School. When he was hired in 2007, he was charged with rebuilding the instrumental music program, which is now in its 16th year at Frost. Under his direction, the amount of students participating has grown significantly, numbering in the 300s in recent years. In an interview with Hollywood First Look, Rodriguez expressed he felt excited and humbled by the recognition, and he credited Taguchi with inspiring him to become a music educator. 

Sanderlin was the second shining star to be honored in the night. She is the founder of Why Not Incubator, Inc., an organization that connects educators with community partners to create pathways and build bridges for marginalized youth. Goldie Hawn, one of Sanderlin’s collaborators, spoke about working with her and presented her with the award. Currently, Sanderlin serves as the National Education Leadership Executive at Apple, Inc., supporting large urban districts in the United States. Sanderlin spoke with Hollywood First Look about the importance of the event and what it represents.

“Well, it’s an incredibly important event because it’s more than an event. To me, it is a movement, it is an awakening. And one thing I have learned is that we need to amplify impact. We need to amplify the arts and make sure that our scholars – and I call them scholars, not students – but that our scholars have those opportunities and possibilities so that they can be their best and express who they really authentically are,” she said on the red carpet.

Knobloch, NBC Universal’s President of Music and Publishing, was the third shining star honored at the gala, with Adam Blackstone presenting the award. In his role, Knobloch oversees all music and soundtracks for Universal, working across studio divisions and in partnership with filmmakers. In addition, he has worked on and overseen some of the most iconic films and franchises, including Titanic, Avatar, Jurassic World, Fast and Furious, and Despicable Me. He spoke to Hollywood First Look about what ETM-LA means to him on a personal level.

“ETM-LA, to me, shines a light on the fact that a lot of stuff I had growing up in public school on the East Coast, I guess, in hindsight, I took it for granted. I didn’t know that it would be a bonus or an extra to have music as part of my K-12 education, and what ETM-LA does, reaching 19,000 students a year – if you just kind of pause and think about that – 19,000 students that they’ll reach this year to make sure that they have some level of music and creative arts education. It becomes, you know, something like a no-brainer to be passionate about.”

On a night to honor music education, musical performances could not be absent in the celebration. Students from Payne P-8 Steam Academy, Toluca Lake Elementary School, and Frost Middle School serenaded gala guests with touching and fun performances. Remi Wolf also gave a soulful performance during the celebration, with Gavin DeGraw closing out the performances for the night, lighting up the place with some of his hit songs. DeGraw was accompanied by BBE All Stars and honoree Mike Knobloch for a special final song.

Other guests in attendance included ETM-LA board members Victoria Lanier and Christopher Lennertz, Cobra Kai composer Zach Robinson, Sherri Chung (the first female governor of the music branch of the Television Academy), and city of Compton Mayor Emma Sharif.

ETM-LA is a nonprofit organization that partners with elementary and middle schools to provide music education to under-resourced schools. This gala helped raise funds for their music programs. Since its creation, the nonprofit organization has reached approximately 19,000 students through 45 schools across Los Angeles County. They continue to partner with under-resourced schools to provide music as a core academic subject. This year’s gala was ETM-LA’s largest to date, raising over $750,000 to further its mission.

Visit the ETMA-LA website to learn more.