On May 2, West Chicago Community High School recognized 54 seniors who earned the Seal of Biliteracy or Illinois State Commendation towards Biliteracy this spring. These students will receive recognition on their diploma, and in their official transcript. They will also participate in Honors Night on May 15.

The Seal of Biliteracy was awarded to 33 students:

Polish: Sabina Dzioch

Spanish: Denise Guadalupe Aguilar Garcia, Kenya Bahena, Ashley Barrera, Ismael Barrera Jr., Pablo Barrera Mendoza, Melissa Casimiro, Alexa Correa, Melanie Coss, Vanessa Garcia, Jennifer Gomez, Itzel Hernandez, Jamileth Hernandez, Kary Hernandez, Shayla Hernandez, Gannon Hosticka, Analucia Lopez, John Luis, Milagros Mendez, Nayely Mendez, Fernando Ortiz Beltran, Lizbeth Orozco, Alexa Palacios Reyes, Gardenia Ramirez, Belen Rangel Beltran, Melyssa Salinas, Dayanna Sanchez, Mariana Servin, Mark Stavenger, Montserrat Renee Tapia, Fabricio Vargas, Jennifer Vargas, Isabella Wiehle 

The Commendation toward Biliteracy was awarded to the following 21 seniors:

Arabic: Tutu Kuku

French: AnnaBelle Beaird, Lilybet Mendez Munoz, Sam Rutledge, Ximena Valenciano Serna

German: Milagros Mendez

Spanish: Maria AlHammo, Ximena Avila, Allison Balmer, Yasmin Calderon, Leyla Garcia, Cristian Leon, Jack Riconosciuto, Maritsa Romero, Courtney Roxas, Alysa Solomon, Ashley Soria, Ema Tomasevic, Anelise Velasco, Thania Villagran, Connor Zentner

Milagros Mendez was the only recipient to be awarded in more than one language (Spanish and German).

Since 2018, 130 students have been awarded the Seal of Biliteracy at West Chicago Community High School.  This year was the first year that the Commendation toward Biliteracy was awarded to students, and the first year that students received recognition in Arabic and Polish.

Recipients are considered “more competitive to future employers and college admissions offices”.  In addition, in the state of Illinois, they are eligible for free college credit at all public colleges and universities.

To qualify for the Seal of Biliteracy, recipients must demonstrate proficiency in English and a second language that is equivalent to Intermediate-High or above, as determined by the American Council on the Teaching of Foreign Languages. To qualify for the Commendation toward Biliteracy, recipients demonstrate English and/or second language proficiency with a rating of Intermediate-Low or Intermediate-Mid. Additionally, seniors must earn a minimum score on the SAT, ACT, ACCESS for ELLs 2.0, AAPPL, AP, or STAMP in each language. For students who may speak a language not tested on one of these assessments, a language portfolio may be developed which is then evaluated by the same standards.

More information about the Seal of Biliteracy program specifically at West Chicago Community High School is available on the school’s website.