César E. Chávez Center for Higher Education
March 20, 2026
CPP Community,
We recognize and acknowledge that harm has occurred and center the individuals and communities most impacted. We also acknowledge the courage of those who spoke out and shared their stories of survival and pain.
At this time, we are entering a period of collective mourning. This collective mourning includes a pausing recognition, creating space for reflection, and committing to a process that prioritizes survivor voices and community guidance.
The covering of our building's name placard is a visible marker of that pause.
In the coming weeks, we will invite our community to participate in listening sessions and engagement opportunities to help co–create a new name rooted in our community values and ideals. We will move forward with care, accountability, and a shared commitment to creating a center that reflects our community’s shared vision for a better future. The new name for the center will reflect this shared vision, values, and collective voice.
March 18, 2026
Read the University's Statement on César Chávez
Cal Poly Pomona is deeply troubled by recent allegations that have surfaced concerning César E. Chávez. Understandably, this moment has evoked a wide range of emotions within our campus community, including grief, trauma, confusion, anger and, for some, a profound sense of betrayal.
Mission Statement
CECCHE is committed to increasing the outreach, recruitment, retention, graduation and cultural pride of Chicanxs/Latinxs at Cal Poly Pomona.
CECCHE warmly welcomes any person, regardless of how they identify. It is also a space for people of all backgrounds to explore, learn, connect and build coalition.
We celebrate diversity in all its forms and are committed to providing a respectful and inclusive environment for every individual.
About CECCHE
We exist because of a strong student activist movement aimed at establishing a more inclusive campus. The César E. Chávez Center for Higher Education (CECCHE) was the result of two years of demands by the Cal Poly Pomona RAZA students, supportive community representatives, and key Latinx leaders.
On May 7th, 1993, approximately 120 students gathered to form a campus-wide protest. Students marched through the campus carrying a coffin signifying the death of diversity on campus. Today, the coffin still stands in the CECCHE as a symbol of our past struggles, current victories, and the hope for a better tomorrow. The demands and protests resulted in the formation and establishment of the CECCHE in the spring of 1995.
- Academic Success/ Graduate School Preparation
- Community Building
- Career Readiness
- Cultural & Arte
- Identity Development
- Social Awareness
Although we recognize that “Latino” has been able to center the experiences many communities, it also excludes non-binary people.
We use the alternative term “Latinx” to go beyond gender and establish inclusivity in our language and center.