BILITERACY CHAMPIONS
These MHS Class of 2024 seniors earned the Seal of Biliteracy. Lijoy Loubnane Khalil earned the seal in two languages! Congrats to all!
Seal of Biliteracy with Distinction
Jatsiri Contreras – Spanish
Lijoy Loubnane Khalil – Arabic
Kimberly Dayanna Natareno Vasquez – Spanish
Yansel Milciades Ortiz Cruz – Spanish
Seal of Biliteracy
Wilmerys Michell Adames Beltre – Spanish
Alicia Candida Monteiro Almeida – Portuguese
Jeremy Alvarado – Spanish
Bao Phuc Dinh – Vietnamese
Myali Teresa Dominguez – Spanish
Saul Fernandez Valerio – Spanish
Yorbi Emmanuel Franco Alburquerque – Spanish
Lysneth Nicole Grullon Jorge – Spanish
Melanie Sofia Hernandez Espinoza – Spanish
Rihanna Lizbeth Jaime – Spanish
Lijoy Loubnane Khalil – French
Kemberly Alexia Lima Barrera – Spanish
Edilianny Liranzo Hernandez – Spanish
Carol Maldonado Arias – Spanish
Chantal Marie Martinez – Spanish
By Melissa Fili
MethuenLife Writer
When Kimberly Natareno Vasquez came to the U.S. about a decade ago, she was a shy, scared 7-year-old because she couldn’t speak English like her classmates. Now she is one of only 32 Class of 2024 grads whose Methuen High diploma includes the prestigious Seal of Biliteracy.
It symbolizes “high level mastery” in reading, writing and speaking English as well as another language of the student’s choice, per the state Department of Education. The seal also represents fluency in a second (or third!) language that can be the key to earning college credits, landing a great job, opening the door to new opportunities and exploring the world.
“I feel that earning the seal was an honor. I was told I passed with the highest possible score. That was really cool. As someone who moved here and really couldn’t speak English, it shows my growth,” says Kimberly, a native of Guatemala who thrived in her English as a Second Language (ESL) classes from a young age. “I will hopefully go to UMass Boston and get my bachelor’s in political science and minor in international relations, then go to law school and become a lawyer.”
MHS offered students the chance to earn the Seal of Biliteracy starting with the Class of 2021.
“It’s an award that’s earned upon graduation. Students are demonstrating high levels of proficiency in English, based on their ELA MCAS scores, and another language. Then they have to test in that other language,” explained Methuen Public Schools’ World Language Department Chair Laura Enright. “We give the students a third-party test (a national-level test approved by the state) in their language to prove their abilities.
“They’re graded on every language domain – speaking, listening, reading, writing – and you have to earn a qualifying score in every single domain. It’s truly an accomplishment,” she said. “They have to show an understanding of the mechanics of the language.”
At first, students only in upper-level Spanish classes were encouraged to take the one-time, week-long sit-down test. Then teachers surveyed students, asking, “Do you speak, read and write in another language?” and encouraged them to take the test. Now it has expanded to where some recent immigrants can benefit from early testing.
“A lot of our English Language Learner students might come from Lebanon where they attended a French-speaking school. So they’re coming with great language skills from their home country – not only in Arabic, but also in French,” Enright said.
Student participation has jumped from that first year, which had 8 students (most earned the seal in Spanish, but 1 earned it in Spanish and French). This year, 32 seniors achieved the seal including, for the first time, a mastery in Vietnamese as well as a student who earned the seal in French AND Arabic.
“You can test in more than one language, and that’s really exciting for us,” Enright said. “That’s where I think Methuen is really unique. Not only that we have multi-lingual students that excel in both English and another language, but sometimes in three languages!”
“Earning the Seal of Biliteracy is an honor that less than 10% of the graduating class earned. Our (2024) class was about 480, and we’ve got 32 kids earning it. That’s pretty prestigious on its own,” Enright continued. “Of the 32, four of them earned the highest distinction. They worked really hard – and they’re so proud.”
English Learner Education (ELE) Department Chair Christine Staugler believes teens recognize that their effort to attain the seal will pay off in various ways: “I do think more and more students are realizing the benefit of it. They are seeing how it can help themselves, can help their families, can help further their career aspirations. And I do feel like when the survey went out, asking students who wanted to take the test, there were a lot of students who expressed interest because they understand that this is something that will help them.”
The recent high school grad, Natareno Vasquez, can’t believe how far she’s come from those early days.
“Being in specials or art or gym (with mostly English speakers) was really frustrating. I had all this knowledge and wanted to learn and understand what others were saying, but the language barrier was so hard to get over. It was scary. What if something happened to me and people couldn’t understand me?” she said. “I felt people were making fun of me. I got that feeling of being left out.”
She worked hard, “aged out” of ESL by third grade and is now embracing the advantage of earning the Seal of Biliteracy as a sophomore, which she says helped with college-prep testing and applications.
What’s her advice for kids unsure about enduring a potentially tough week of testing their language skills via audio recordings and essay writing?
“Just take it. If you don’t get the score you were hoping for, there’s always room for improvement. I definitely think it would be a missed opportunity if they didn’t take advantage of the opportunity,” she said. “For me, it was an easy test to follow along with and the teachers are always there to help you.”
These are some of the 32 Methuen High seniors who earned the esteemed Seal of Biliteracy last spring. Courtesy photo
