We are excited to announce the 2025-2026 academic year Cesar E. Chavez Leadership Conference (CECLC) will be hosted on Friday May 8, 2026 at Western Oregon University. CECLC is the largest leadership event for Latiné students in Oregon, which has brought over 2000 students to Western Oregon University to attend workshops/presentations, hear from distinguished speakers, and participate in a college and career fair.
This year our theme is “Estamos Aquí” (We Are Here): Asserting Our Presence and Protecting Our Stories.
Registration is now open! Please follow this Registration Link to register your students and chaperones.
The call for presenters is also open! If you are interested in presenting, please fill out the Presenter Form.
Please email ceclc@wou.edu if you have any questions about this year’s conference.
About
About CECLC
Welcome to the César E. Chávez Leadership Conference (CECLC).
CECLC began in 1990 as a gathering of Hispanic high school students from Portland Public Schools. The first event took place in early February at Montgomery Park. The day before the conference, a snow storm hit the Portland metropolitan area which resulted in the closing of the schools and the cancellation of bus transportation. By midmorning, on the day of the event, a determined group of PPS students found their way to the conference site. They were not to be deterred.
Through the efforts of Sonny Montes and Jose Romero and a partnership with Hispanics in Unity for Oregon (HIUFO), the conference was established.
Since 1990 the César E. Chávez Leadership Conference has been a volunteer driven event. The CECLC committee is responsible for organizing, planning and implementing the conference each year.
In 2007, the César E. Chávez Leadership Conference moved from the Portland area to being hosted on the Western Oregon University campus. In 2017, Western Oregon University became the permanent conference site. Western Oregon University has not only hosted this event for several years, but they have dedicated staff time, campus resources and student volunteers to help ensure that the César E. Chávez Leadership Conference is able to fulfill their mission; to instill in our youth, the value of education; which nurtures mind, body and spirit in order to develop a social consciousness that empowers them as leaders for social justice and civic responsibility in the greater community.
You can contact the CECLC committee to provide comments, to report concerns, or to ask a question, at the following email address: ceclc@wou.edu.
On behalf of the CECLC Summit committee, we would like to give a special thank you to our sponsors for their major support of the annual Cesar E. Chavez Leadership Conference. The continued success of our programs relies on the generosity of corporate sponsors, foundations, individuals, and contributors.
Our Key sponsor for this event is the Oregon Community Foundation (OCF)
Accommodations
If you would like to request disability-related accommodation(s) to participate in a WOU activity or event, please complete the online request form at least three (3) business days in advance. If you have questions, contact Disability Access Services (DAS) at 503-838-8250 or das@wou.edu.
