Dear County and District Superintendents, Direct-Funded Charter School Administrators, and High School Principals:

Updated Guidance for Awarding the State Seal of Biliteracy: 2023–24

The California Department of Education (CDE) will continue to award the State Seal of Biliteracy (SSB) during the 2023–24 school year. As always, local educational agencies can order insignias through the online Insignia Request Form on the CDE SSB web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/ml/sealofbiliteracy.asp.

Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill (AB) 370 on October 7, 2023, which amends the SSB requirements effective January 1, 2024. The full text of AB 370 is available on the California Legislative Information AB 370 Pupil Instruction: State Seal of Biliteracy web page at https://bit.ly/AB370 under the “Today’s Law as Amended” tab. The new requirements apply to all students seeking the SSB beginning with 2024 graduates. These changes provide additional options for students to demonstrate proficiency in both English and a world language in addition to English. The new requirements are reflected on the CDE SSB web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/ml/sealofbiliteracy.asp.

Additional guidance for awarding the SSB during the 2023–24 school year is available on the CDE SSB Frequently Asked Questions web page at https://www.cde.ca.gov/sp/ml/ssbfaq.asp.

If you have questions regarding the SSB, please contact Gina Garcia-Smith, Education Programs Consultant, Multilingual Support Division, at 916-319-0265 or SEAL@cde.ca.gov.

Sincerely,

/s/

Sarah Neville-Morgan, Deputy Superintendent
Opportunities for All Branch

SNM:ggs