State Superintendent Tony Thurmond Celebrates California State Student Authors

SACRAMENTO—State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond and the California Department of Education (CDE) were honored to host California State Student Authors on Monday, April 6, for a special celebration at CDE headquarters in Sacramento to celebrate their published works and recognize the power of writing to promote literacy and student voice.

These incredible student authors, who range in grades from five to twelve, read excerpts from their published works. The students’ books cover many themes relevant to young readers, including belonging, curiosity, adventure, science fiction, bullying, and positive thinking. Tanya Baker, Executive Director of the National Writing Project, and award-winning author Sandra Cisneros shared advice for young authors and spoke about the importance of writing and literacy as skills for lifelong learning and success.

This year’s student state authors:

• Zinuo (Dora) Cai, Suzanne Middle School in Walnut
• Sailee Charlu, Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana
• Sonata Chi, Glen A. Wilson High School in Hacienda Heights
• Helena Donato-Sapp, Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana
• Kristal Fuentes, San Bernardino High School in San Bernardino
• Soorya Ramaraju, James Logan High School in Union City
• Emmanuel Salazar Lira, Norwalk High School in Norwalk
• Leila Sahabi, Anderson W. Clark Magnet High School in Glendale
• Aizelle San, Pleasant Grove Elementary School in Elk Grove
• Samantha Wu, Orange County School of the Arts in Santa Ana
• Zoe Zavala, San Jacinto Leadership Academy in San Jacinto

“There is a deep connection between writing and reading, and this is another way for us to help remind other students in our state about the importance of literacy and reading,” Superintendent Thurmond said. “We often say that when you learn to read, you read to learn everything and anything. We want California students to develop a love for reading, and we think that writing can be an important part of that.”

Superintendent Thurmond continues to lead California’s commitment to literacy and biliteracy, emphasizing the importance of writing as a key driver of strong reading outcomes and meaningful student engagement. California’s approach to literacy and biliteracy builds on decades of educational research applicable to our culturally and linguistically rich and diverse student population, including the science of reading and literacy and the science of learning and development. As a dynamic state with extraordinary cultural and linguistic resources, California is committed to ensuring students are reading by third grade and are fully literate when they graduate from high school. These efforts include biliteracy enrichments for dual-language learners.

A recording of the event is available on the California Department of Education Facebook page .

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Tony Thurmond — State Superintendent of Public Instruction
Communications Division, Room 5602, 916-319-0818, Fax 916-319-0100