Napa Valley Unified School District Wins Golden Bell Award for TK-12 Dual Language Pathway and Unidos Middle School

December 3, 2025 – The Napa Valley Unified School District (NVUSD) has been honored with the prestigious California School Boards Association (CSBA) Golden Bell Award for its TK-12 Dual Language Immersion (DLI) Pathway. The award recognizes outstanding educational programs and initiatives within school districts throughout California. 

NVUSD Superintendent Dr. Rosanna Mucetti shared, “We are dedicated to providing programs that prepare our students for success and ensure they are future-ready. This program not only prepares students for college and career but shapes them into confident, globally-minded citizens. The Dual Language Immersion program is distinguished by its comprehensive scope, ensuring students achieve high proficiency in both Spanish and English. I am excited to celebrate this achievement, an achievement that recognizes our commitment to academic rigor and biliteracy for every student.”

Dr. Alejandra Uribe, Director of Multilingual Learner Services and Parent Engagement and former principal of Unidos Middle School, continued, “Our DLI pathway is more than a program—it’s a promise. From Transitional Kindergarten through graduation, students immerse themselves in Spanish and English, developing high proficiency in both languages. They engage with a rigorous, standards-aligned curriculum that fosters biliteracy, bilingualism, and biculturalism. Our approach, particularly through our innovative Unidos Middle School model, is demonstrating tangible results: our DLI students are excelling and often outperforming their peers.”

NVUSD Trustee and President Eve Ryser concluded, “This honor recognizes the collective commitment of our students, families, teachers, and staff. This award is not simply for achieving a program goal; it is for fulfilling our deepest promise to the community. We are building a system that fosters academic excellence, ensures equity, and provides every DLI student with the tools of biliteracy and biculturalism—skills essential for success in the 21st century. Thank you to CSBA for this recognition, and thank you to our entire NVUSD community for making our Dual Language Immersion pathway a true Golden Bell standard!”

The CSBA Golden Bell Awards promote excellence in education by recognizing outstanding programs and governance practices. For more information about the Golden Bell Awards or NVUSD, please visit nvusd.org or csba.org.