On Wednesday, January 22, 2025, the Oregon Historical Society hosted the event “The Living Legacy of Colegio César Chávez Documentary Screening and Panel Discussion” as an accompaniment to the “Colegio César Chávez: The Legacy Lives On / El legado sigue vivo” exhibit at the Oregon Historical Society.
Over 230+ community members attended the event!
The event invited the general public to join us for a screening of OPB’s new Oregon Experience documentary The Living Legacy of Colegio César Chávez. The event included a panel discussion led by documentary producer Alicia Avila, Colegio César Chávez co-founders Sonny Montes and José Romero, and PODER: Oregon’s Latino Leadership Network President, Anthony Veliz. Colegio César Chávez: The Legacy Lives On / El legado sigue vivo exhibition curator, Natalia Fernández, gave an introduction. The panelists shared their thoughts on the history and legacy of the Colegio César Chávez, ideas for the future of a Colegio 2.0, and then opened the conversation to the audience for questions. Prior to the film screening, attendees enjoyed live music from the Forest Grove High School Mariachi band and viewed the exhibition Colegio César Chávez: The Legacy Lives On / El legado sigue vivo.
Event Panelists:
Alicia Avila is a multilingual journalist and documentary producer based in Portland, Oregon. A common theme of her work is advocating for underrepresented communities, language justice, and accessibility. She is a champion of collaborative and community-led storytelling and leads her video production work through trauma informed practices and a bilingual, bicultural reporting lens. Her most recent work led Pacific Northwest based nonprofit, Oregon Food Bank, to transition into fully bilingual English-Spanish content. Avila is a proud first-generation Chicana born and raised in southeast Los Angeles.
Sonny Montes was one of the founders of the Colegio César Chávez, co-founded the César E. Chávez Student Leadership Conference in 1990, and was a member of the César E. Chávez Boulevard Committee in Portland, Oregon, that was successful in renaming 39th Avenue in honor of César Chávez. In 2010, he received the Distinguished Latino Educator Award from the Oregon Association of Latino Administrators.
José Romero was one of the founders of the Colegio César Chávez and co-founded the César E. Chávez Student Leadership Conference in 1990. He is a retired educator, administrator, and community activist for social justice and equality, and he is a life-long advocate for the well-being of the Chicano/Latino community. Romero taught Chicano Studies at Lane Community College and at Colegio César Chávez where he also served as Director of Academic Affairs and was Co-President.
Anthony Veliz is the founder of PODER: Oregon’s Latino Leadership Network, a nonprofit organization and collective movement of over 100 Latino-led and serving community-based organizations and private-sector businesses, plus thousands of Latinos across Oregon. Veliz is also the owner of IZO Public Relations & Marketing, a multicultural agency specializing in the Latino community; it is a People Focused, Purpose Driven agency. The son of farmworkers, Veliz is involved in the community where he lives and works, and he has a passion for public service. In August of 2023, PODER organized and sponsored a 50th anniversary community commemoration event to celebrate the history and legacy of the Colegio César Chávez.
Natalia Fernández is an Associate Professor and the Curator of the Oregon Multicultural Archives (OMA) and the OSU Queer Archives (OSQA) at the Oregon State University Special Collections and Archives Research Center. Fernández’s mission for directing the OMA and the OSQA is to work in collaboration with Oregon’s African American, Asian American, Latinx, Native American, and OSU’s LGBTIAQ+ communities to support them in preserving their histories and sharing their stories. In collaboration with Montes and Romero, she curated the exhibition Colegio César Chávez: The Legacy Lives On / El legado sigue vivo.
Event Photos:
