School Facility Renaming Initiative

As part of Sac City Unified’s commitment to confront and interrupt racism and create safe learning environments that are welcoming, inclusive, and inspiring places for all of our students and staff, we are working to ensure that the names of District facilities reflect the District’s vision and core value:

SCUSD CORE Value: We recognize that our system is inequitable by design and we vigilantly work to confront and interrupt inequities that exist to level the playing field and provide opportunities for everyone to learn, grow, and reach their greatness.

Why Are Some Schools’ Names Changing? 

Several schools and school facilities in our district were originally named for individuals who history has confirmed engaged in, perpetuated, and/or condoned racism, oppression, colonization and exclusion of others—even genocide.  SCUSD has made a commitment to address school facility names that do not support our district’s values.

Biographical Sketches and Sources: John Sutter, Kit Carson, and Peter Burnett 

Which Schools Are Being Renamed? 

Sutter Middle School, Kit Carson International Academy, and Peter Burnett Elementary School will be renamed. The current mascots for Sutter Middle School and Kit Carson International Academy will also be changed during this process. The district will look at opportunities to address additional school names and mascots that glorify racist historical figures and symbology after the renaming process for these three schools is complete.

Who is Part of the Renaming Committee? 

The School Renaming Committee was appointed by the SCUSD Board of Education in the Fall of 2020 and is composed of one-third Native American voices, one-third administrators and staff, and one-third of Board-appointed community members. Committee meetings are underway with a tentative timeline of bringing recommendations forward to the SCUSD Board of Education in Spring 2023. Not renaming these schools after an individual was given as a parameter to the Committee. The Board will review and vote on the new school names recommended by the committee.

How Will This Effort Impact the District’s Budget? 

We are reviewing the scope of what will need to be addressed throughout our system with the facility renaming initiative and its fiscal impact on the District’s budget. The district will consider costs associated with all touchpoints, including signage, murals, letterhead, logos, and school jerseys. SCUSD is committed to transparency throughout this initiative and will provide regular updates to our community about the facility renaming initiative and the associated costs.

What is the Board Policy Regarding the Naming of Facilities? 

You may view the slide deck from September 2022 that was presented to the Board here, and you can read the policy which was adopted on December 15, 2022 in its entirety here.

Suggestions? Concerns

Please feel free to send us an email for any questions or comments you may have.