On Thursday, the Davis Joint Unified School District board voted unanimously to drop the César Chávez Elementary name and rechristen the campus Monarca Elementary, leaning into a monarch butterfly theme that board members said reflects resilience and transformation. The move follows recommendations from a 15-member ad hoc naming committee and lands in the middle of a nationwide rethinking of Chávez’s legacy.
Committee picks Monarca after community input
The district's naming committee sifted through 281 online suggestions before narrowing the list and ultimately backing Monarca as its top choice, with "Si Se Puede Elementary School" as the runner-up. The final committee vote was 9–6 in favor of Monarca, and its report said the monarch butterfly "symbolizes transformation, growth and resilience." As reported by The Sacramento Bee, committee members also urged teachers to bring naming ideas into classroom conversations while the review was underway.
What sparked the change
The renaming push accelerated after a multi-year investigation, published in March, detailed allegations that César Chávez sexually abused girls and other women and prompted communities and institutions to reconsider how they honor him. As reported by The New York Times, that reporting set off a wave of renamings and broader reevaluations across the state and the country.
How the process unfolded locally
The board created the 15-member ad hoc committee in April and instructed it to deliver recommendations in time for a June board meeting, according to the district's information page. The Davis Joint Unified School District website notes that the compressed schedule was designed so the new name would be in place by the start of the 2026–27 school year.
Mixed reaction at the board meeting
Several parents at Thursday’s meeting argued the fast timeline did not leave enough room for broader community input. One parent said his two children were attached to the school’s wolf mascot and preferred "Si Se Puede," while naming committee chair Edgar Wong-Chen acknowledged that the process felt rushed. Trustee Cecilia Escamilla Greenwald became emotional as she spoke about the power of the phrase, saying, "In spite of all that, si se puede," and Trustee Elizabeth Moon said butterflies stand for resiliency and hope, as reported by The Sacramento Bee.
What's next for Monarca Elementary
With the unanimous vote in hand, trustees cleared the way for district staff to handle the practical side of the change, from new signage to updating enrollment records, over the summer so the school opens under its new name next year. The district’s committee page notes that the ad hoc group formally sent its recommendation to the superintendent for inclusion on the board agenda and that staff will guide the transition. The Davis Joint Unified School District says those updates are slated to be finished before the 2026–27 school year begins.
Part of a wider reassessment
Davis’s move slots into a broader California trend as cities, campuses and school districts wrestle with how to honor the farmworker movement without centering a figure whose legacy is now under scrutiny. As outlined by KQED, dozens of public sites bearing Chávez’s name have been reviewed since the March reporting surfaced.
