Kevin Brawley ’13
Outstanding Young Alumni Award
After an initial career as a professional musician, Kevin Brawley decided he wanted to share his passion for music in a different way. After graduating with his bachelor’s degree in music education from the College of Art + Architecture, he became an award-winning Charlotte-Mecklenburg School music educator at Torrence Creek Elementary in Huntersville, NC, where he taught for over nine years.
As a teacher, Kevin believes in every child’s ability to learn regardless of circumstance or background. He prides himself on having an inclusive and positive learning environment for all of his students. Kevin’s energetic and unorthodox teaching style is focused on student engagement, a willingness to search for unexpected teaching moments and honest personal relationships with each of his students, which make the rigorous concepts he teaches easy for them to get excited about.
Every child had a voice in Kevin’s classroom and choir, which is why he developed the Quarter Notes for 4th and 5th graders with no try-outs. All students who signed-up for the after-school choir were accepted and welcomed. Quarter Notes was the first elementary school choir to sing with Carolina Voices Singing Christmas Tree and also performed on several occasions at the Blumenthal Performing Arts. In 2019, Kevin was honored by the Country Music Association (CMA) Foundation as a Music Teacher of Excellence, a recognition only given to 30 music educators across the United States.
Most recently, Brawley founded Kinetic Development, an organization that provides professional development, teacher coaching, curriculum development and public speaking services. He is the creator of curriculum planning app LOOP and “Studio Time ELA with Mr. B,” an elementary school assembly and workshop program that teaches ELA concepts through singing, composition, recording and dance. Kevin is also writing his first book, “The Sober Teacher” and is working to create an online homeschool music program to help parents give their students the same level of musical instruction available in his classroom