Eleven Arkansas School for Mathematics, Sciences and the Arts students earned the Arkansas Seal of Biliteracy by demonstrating proficiency in English and at least one other language before graduating high school.
The Arkansas Seal of Biliteracy is awarded each spring and fall to students in ninth through 12th grades and is sponsored by the Arkansas Foreign Language Teachers Association and the Arkansas Teachers of English to Speakers of Other Languages. The Arkansas Department of Education officially endorsed the seal in June 2018.
There were 403 high school students from 24 Arkansas school districts and charter, private or virtual schools and home schoolers who earned the recognition this fall.
ASMSA students who earned recognition this spring were:
- Connor Bailey, a senior from Paragould, Spanish;
- Rose Brown, a junior from Donaldson, French;
- Shawn Chen, a senior from Little Rock, Japanese;
- Grecia Gonzalez, a senior from Fort Smith, Spanish;
- Avery Goodrich, a senior from Conway, French;
- Lauralee Jarrett, a senior from Brinkley, French;
- Myka Shepherd, a senior from Hot Springs Village, French;
- Joshua Stallings, a senior from Little Rock, French;
- Jayita Ujjaini, a senior from Jonesboro, Spanish;
- Cadence Ventress, a senior from Benton, Spanish; and
- Tami Weng, a senior from Sherwood, Chinese.
The test for the seal are conducted in the fall and spring. Students who apply for the Seal of Biliteracy must complete an application in which they submit evidence of their proficiency in both languages. Students can use their seal of recognition on college and job applications to show future employers and admissions offices that they are proficient in two or more languages. The seal is notional recognized. As of 2019, 35 states have an official Seal of Biliteracy and 12 more were on their way to having their own seal, according to information from the Arkansas Seal of Biliteracy Committee.
For more information on the program, visit arbiliteracy.org.