Want to help rename Polk Elementary School in Fresno? Here’s how you can participate

Central Unified School District is again calling on community members to provide input on renaming schools — but this time, the task is actually choosing a new name.

The school board voted Tuesday night to rename James K. Polk Elementary School after a yearlong debate and months of school renaming committee meetings.

In a news release Thursday, district officials said community members would be able to recommend new names through an online community survey.

Versions of the survey written in English, Spanish and Pubjabi went online Friday afternoon on Central Unified’s Facebook page. The deadline to fill out the survey is July 21, according to the post.

Trustees will review the submissions at the next school board meeting, which is scheduled for July 26.

Over 30 speakers addressed school renaming at Tuesday’s meeting, including the family of Central student Malachi Suarez, who launched the effort to rename Polk Elementary through a school project emphasizing former president Polk’s racist legacy last summer.

After voting to rename Polk, the board briefly discussed potential new names.

Trustee Jeremy Mehling, who voted against renaming the school, suggested naming the school “Polk” as opposed to “James K. Polk” Elementary “because it sits on the road,” he said, meaning Polk Avenue. Board President Richard Solis, who voted in favor of renaming the school, said going with Polk would defeat the purpose of the renaming discussion and proposed naming the school Central Elementary School in honor of the district’s upcoming centennial.

Trustee Yesenia Carrillo, who also voted in favor of renaming Polk, said she was “not prepared” to select a new name that night or under the impression that the board would do so that night.

If the board wishes to rename the school before the next school year, “time is of the essence,” Superintendent Ketti Davis said.

Two members of the Suarez family were asked to leave Tuesday’s meeting after multiple outbursts during the board’s discussion of the proposed renamings, calling for more community input in selecting the new name.

That wasn’t the first time the renaming process has sparked outcry, however. Malachi’s father, Gabriel Suarez, has repeatedly accused the district of “bureaucratic slowdown” and silencing voices through the committee. Central Unified students of color have also spoken out about feeling unwelcome at the renaming committee meetings.

In addition, community members have challenged the results of a district survey which found a majority of respondents opposed changing the name of Polk and other schools, arguing Central Unified students were left out of the survey.

The board also voted Tuesday to change the school logo for Madison Elementary. The previous logo depicts a Native American wearing a headdress. Madison students will be able to weigh in on the new logo at the start of the school year.

The Education Lab is a local journalism initiative that highlights education issues critical to the advancement of the San Joaquin Valley. It is funded by donors. Learn about The Bee’s Education Lab at its website.