SAN BERNARDINO, CA—The San Bernardino City Unified School District has been selected by the California School Boards Association as a 2025 Golden Bell Award recipient for its innovative Pathway to Biliteracy program. This honor recognizes the district’s strong commitment to world languages and its long-standing investment in preparing students to graduate as confident, capable communicators in more than one language.
The Golden Bell Awards highlight programs throughout California that demonstrate excellence in governance, innovation and student-centered practices. SBCUSD’s Pathway to Biliteracy Program stood out in the category of Curriculum and Instruction for World Languages and Biliteracy for its comprehensive approach that supports students from elementary through high school with language development, cultural understanding and opportunities to earn recognition for their bilingual achievements.
The San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools and the San Bernardino County School Boards Association honored the winning programs during the Annual Meeting held Feb. 2.
The biliteracy initiative is run by the Multilingual Programs Department, under the leadership of Directors Les Ojeda and Tex Acosta. The program expands access to high-quality language instruction, elevates cultural and linguistic diversity and equips students with skills that strengthen college and career readiness. Thousands of students participate each year, and the district continues to expand assistance for students learning English and heritage speakers so more students can earn formal Biliteracy Pathway Awards and the California State Seal of Biliteracy.
“As a bilingual educator and a proud product of public schools right here in San Bernardino, this award is deeply meaningful to me,” said Superintendent Mauricio Arellano. “Our Pathway to Biliteracy program honors our students’ cultures, languages and identities while preparing them to thrive in a global society.”
SBCUSD was one of five school districts in San Bernardino County recognized with a Golden Bell by CSBA this year. A Golden Bell is often seen as the Emmy of public education because it represents the highest level of recognition for excellence in school programs across California.
