Biliteracy Talks at Blue Mountain

As of the summer of 2024, Blue Mountain Christian University’s Mrs. Rutland earned her Doctorate of Language and Literature and was named the 2025 Humanities Teacher of the Year by the Mississippi Humanities Council. She’ll deliver a condensed lecture titled “Educators Perceive Biliteracy as a Resource for Students in Mississippi,” which is to take place in the Modenia Lowrey Administration Building’s auditorium. It will be followed by an honorary reception in the Paschal Student Union Building. Dr. Rutland’s focus was on biliteracy in schools—specifically, she noted that she was referring to both the ability to read and speak a language, not just the ability to speak it. The Mississippi Seal of Biliteracy was adopted by the state in 2019, focusing primarily on the addition of Spanish education. Meant to recognize and award achievements in biliteracy made before college, high school students who have honed their understanding of a language other than English will be further recognized by future colleges and employers due to their language efficiency. Around twenty school districts in the state have participated since the 2019-2020 school year.

Interviewing a little less than two dozen educators, school counselors, and other academic officials from these districts, Dr. Rutland collected their opinions and perspectives on their districts accepting the biliteracy Seal, which moved Spanish closer to English on an academic level in the state. While there is a decent amount of benefits—linguistic education, career opportunities, and cultural participation—there are also noted downsides such as a lack of awareness and qualified personnel.

She was the most vocal about the potential of biliteracy aiding students in their academic careers and in job hunting. “It’s exciting to share that educators like school administrators, counselors and classroom teachers perceive that students’ home languages in addition to English is valuable to their education. Educators in two schools in Mississippi stated that biliteracy is beneficial for students’ education and provides an advantage in the competitive job market.”