The New Jersey State Seal of Biliteracy is an award given by the NJ Department of Education (NJDOE) in recognition of students who have studied and attained proficiency in at least one language in addition to English by high school graduation.  

California was the first state to develop an award in 2011, and New Jersey became the 17th state to implement a legislated statewide Seal of Biliteracy in 2016.  Over 200 NJ school districts participate in the initiative.

To achieve the Seal, students must demonstrate the ability to speak, read, listen and write in one or more languages, in addition to English, at an intermediate-mid level of proficiency. Latin students are only tested in reading. Students may test in more than one language.

The Seal of Biliteracy seeks to encourage students to study languages, certify attainment of biliteracy, provide prospective employers and universities with a method of identifying people with advanced biliteracy skills, promote second language instruction in public schools, and affirm the value of diversity.

The qualifying exam for the Seal is completely OPTIONAL. Students who choose to pursue it pay for the cost of test administration.  Hardship scholarships are available. 

The State requires that students must demonstrate both 

1.  English language proficiency by attaining the English language arts graduation requirements for New Jersey. Multilingual Learners (MLs) may also demonstrate English proficiency by achieving a score of at least 4 on all sections on Tier B or Tier C of the ACCESS for ELLs assessment during their junior year of high school.

AND

2. Proficiency in another language by achieving an intermediate-mid score (5 or higher)  on one of the assessments NJ deems eligible for school administration.  RHS uses The Avant STAMP™ (STAndards-based Measurement of Proficiency) language assessment to measure proficiency to allow students to qualify for the award.

Current Juniors and Seniors are eligible to take the qualifying test in January 2025. The State's testing window to demonstrate proficiency is January 1 of a student's  junior year through February of their senior year. Students who do not pass in their junior year may retake the complete exam in January of their senior year. Students taking a language at the IV Honors or AP level at RHS are strongly encouraged to test.  

The State accepts reports from schools each spring of seniors who have met the Seal requirements. After completing a verification process, the State makes the final determination and awards certificates. 

The NJ Department of Education officially awards the NJ Seal of Biliteracy Certificate in May of the student's SENIOR year. Passing the Avant STAMP qualifying exam offered at RHS is just one step in this process.

STAMP ASL & Latin Exams will be given during school language classes in January or as determined by your teacher. 

STAMP 4S & WS Spoken Language Exams

When:    Saturday, January 4th, doors open at 8:30 a.m., exam begins at 9:00 a.m.

Where:  RHS Learning Commons

*** You must use your RHS Chromebook for the exam. Using a personal device can lead to system issues that may lower your score.

If you register for more than one 4S or WS Spoken Language exam, the second exam will be given on Thursday, January 30th at 3:10 in the LC. Section retakes and make-up exams will be given at this time as well.

Students must complete the form using their RHS email address. 

Complete this Google form,  Seal of Biliteracy Qualifying Exam Registration and pay the appropriate fee to complete your registration.

Three answers on the form must match the information in your RHS Skyward account EXACTLY. The State of NJ verifies your test results using this information. 

• Open your Skyward account. 

• Find your RHS Skyward Name:  Last Name, First Name.  Copy and paste it into the appropriate questions.

• Find your STUDENT AND STATE ID numbers:   Go to Portfolio - Open any Report Card.   In the center under Quarter,  COPY each into the questions.  See the example below.

Payment must be received by DECEMBER 10th. Please pay immediately after submitting the registration form if possible. 

Parents/guardians can pay using their SKYWARD FAMILY ACCESS account. 

Go to  Fee Management (left row), then MAKE A PAYMENT (top row), and then OPTIONAL FEES (left row).

Add the correct fee or fees that match the options from the website; see list below. If registering for more than one language exam, add the correct fee again. Then complete the payment using RevTrack. 

 Biliteracy 4S/WS/ASL :   $35.00    (All languages except Hebrew and Latin)

 Biliteracy 4S Hebrew:  $60.00

 Biliteracy  Latin:   $12.00

If unable to pay using Skyward, it is the student's responsibility to bring cash or a check made payable to Ridgewood Public Schools to Ms. Griffith in Rm. 200 by December 10th.

If you have free/reduced lunch, do not pay the fee as it will be waived.  If you need payment assistance or a hardship waiver of the fee, please contact your guidance counselor or Ms. Griffith via email: rgriffith@rpsnj.us.  

The State requires a score of 5 or higher on each section of the STAMP exam to qualify for the Seal. 

Results will be sent to the student's school email account a few weeks after the test date. Students eligible for a section retake will receive their results before those who pass. 

 If you fail one section by one point (score of 4), you may retake that section for an additional fee. Make sure to respond to the email to commit to the retake and pay the retake fee in Skyward.

Ridgewood High School World Language Department Contacts:

Ms. Rosanna Griffith, Administrative Assistant & Biliteracy Test Coordinator, Room 200: rgriffith@rpsnj.us   or  

Mr. Mark Ferreri, Supervisor of World Languages, Room 207: mferreri@rpsnj.us