Jon Bernstein
Jul 15, 20222 min
JNCL-NCLIS Applauds House Passage of the Biliteracy Education and Seal (BEST) Act
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
WASHINGTON, D.C., July 15th, 2022 - This week, the full House of Representatives approved an amendment to the FY23 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) that authorizes the Biliteracy Education and Seal Teaching Act (BEST) – HR 1731 – which would provide support for states to establish, improve and implement Seal of Biliteracy programs across the country. The full House passed the NDAA yesterday. The Senate will take up this annual defense authorization bill in September.
Seal of Biliteracy programs have already been adopted in 49 states and thousands of students have earned seals on their diplomas or transcripts denoting their proficiency in one world language in addition to English. To support this progress, JNCL-NCLIS has worked closely with Representative Brownley (D-CA) to ensure the BEST Act provides appropriate support for the resources needed to implement and expand these programs and provide equitable opportunities for all students to earn their seals.
“JNCL-NCLIS congratulates and thanks Rep. Julia Brownley (D-CA), the lead sponsor of the BEST Act and the amendment to authorize it, for her perseverance in seeking to enact this important piece of legislation,” said JNCL-NCLIS President, Amanda Seewald. “We urge the Senate to follow the House’s lead and support inclusion of the BEST Act in its version of the FY23 NDAA.”
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About JNCL-NCLIS:
Established in 1972, the Joint National Committee for Languages (JNCL) and the National Council for Languages and International Studies (NCLIS) unites a national network of leading organizations and businesses comprised of over 300,000 language professionals to advocate for equitable language learning opportunities. Our mission is to ensure that Americans have the opportunity to learn English and at least one other language.
Contact: info@languagepolicy.org