Three H-D-CAL grads earn Seal of Biliteracy

Three recent Hampton-Dumont-CAL High School graduates recently added a valuable tool to their resumes.

Recently, Heidy Ojeda-Rodriguez, Jennifer Ramirez and Gloria Rodriguez all obtained the Seal of Biliteracy, which is given to students who have attained proficiency in two or more languages. In order to achieve the seal, students have to prove proficient in English through the Iowa Statewide Assessment of Student Progress (ISASP), the ACT or another state-approved standardized assessment and pass the reading, writing, listening and speaking sections of the National STAMP test in the selected language.

While the seal is available in many languages, all three students achieved the designation for Spanish.

Cynthia Krull, counselor at H-D-CAL, said the seal is valuable because it’s a clear sign to employers that the student is bilingual, which is a desirable trait in prospective employees.

“Colleges, future employers will literally see this student is bilingual,” she said. “If you have two people who are equal and have an employee base that speaks more than one language, you want your bilingual person.”

Now, four students at H-D-CAL have earned the seal since its national inception in 2018. Marie Gonzalez, a 2019 graduate, became the first student at H-D-CAL to earn it last year.

Krull said interested in the seal within the H-D-CAL building has grown substantially since it became available. Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic and related shut down, Krull said 24 students at H-D-CAL had expressed interest in the exam. However, the national Seal of Biliteracy officials announced that only seniors would be allowed to take the exam this year, which whittled the amount of eligible students down to 12. Ultimately, four students took the exam, which Krull had clearance to administer a week after the commencement ceremony on May 24.

She said she commended the students who took the exam because of the various factors presented by the pandemic and the commitment needed after graduation.

“They ran into so many issues trying to take the test,” she said. “Their stamina, their tenacity, their willingness…they really wanted this.”

Krull added that she was impressed with the determination of the students because the easiest thing to do with school being cancelled for the remainder of the year would have been to abandon the pursuit of the seal. However, those students who still went through the preparation and the exam showed how important earning that designation was to them.

“If you think of everything the kids have been through in the last couple months, that four seniors did not give up and went for it, that’s just amazing,” she said.