Two Finalists Named in Search to Rename School

Courtesy PBS

BAKERSFIELD, CA (KUZZ) — The debate over renaming Cesar Chavez Elementary School in Bakersfield is down to two finalists.

One option, Helen Chavez Elementary, honors Cesar Chavez’s late wife and a key figure in the farmworker movement. The other, Sí Se Puede Elementary,  reflects the rallying cry, “Yes, we can.”

A district advisory committee of the Bakersfield City School District reviewed 866 survey responses collected in May.

The school board will hear public comment June 23, 2026, before making a final decision.

The change comes after a New York Times investigation reported allegations from several women who were sexually assaulted by UFW founder Cesar Chavez during the 1960s and 1970s.