Anvitha Samineni proudly shows off her California State Seal of Biliteracy. She received recognition for her proficiency in English, Spanish and Telugu. Photo courtesy of San Juan Unified School District

CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - Anvitha Samineni, a 12th-grader from Mira Loma High School, was in the spotlight as a student speaker at the recent Sacramento County Office of Education (SCOE) 2025 California State Seal of Biliteracy Recognition Ceremony. 

Samineni was one of the 400-plus students across the San Juan Unified School District to receive the California State Seal of Biliteracy. She received recognition for her proficiency in English, Spanish and Telugu. 

“Language has always been a big part of my life,” Samineni said. 

Growing up with Telugu spoken at home, Samineni was motivated to gain proficiency in the language that allowed her to connect with her family in India. Meanwhile, Spanish has been a language that she has learned through school.

“A lot of my passion for Spanish has come from my Spanish teacher’s encouragement for us to explore, not just memorizing vocabulary, but also going beyond that and diving deep into the culture,” Samineni said.

Samineni emphasizes the importance of knowing different languages beyond English to communicate with others in her future endeavors. She encourages incoming high school students to recognize what language they intend to pursue and create a plan that will lead them to gain the California State Seal of Biliteracy. 

“It helps (students) add distinctions to their resumes and transcripts,” added San Juan Unified School District’s Seal of Biliteracy coordinator Gerardo Padilla, “but also affirms their culture by giving them a chance to showcase a language that they know.”

At this year’s ceremony, 19 languages were represented and more than 30 students received two or more seals. 

Students interested in earning the California State Seal of Biliteracy must demonstrate proficiency in both English and another language. San Juan Unified School District offers a variety of world language courses for students in middle and high school, including Spanish, Japanese, American Sign Language (ASL), French and Chinese. 

Multilingual students can also take exams offered by the Sacramento County Office of Education and the San Juan Unified District to demonstrate their proficiency in languages not offered through the world language curriculum. 

For more information about earning the California State Seal of Biliteracy, go online to sanjuan.edu/academics/curriculum/world-languages.