Part-Time Instructor Awarded For Commitment To Education

Jose Grave de Peralta, who teaches conversational Spanish in Vance-Granville’s Continuing Education program, has been given the Razor Walker Award for more than 30 years service to education.

The University of North Carolina at Wilmington established the award in 1993 to honor people who have made a significant impact on the lives and the education of children in North Carolina.

Peralta, a college roommate of Fidel Castro in Cuba, left his native land and came to the United States in 1964 because he did not want his children raised in a communist country. He taught about 30 years in the Vance County schools before retiring. In addition to his part-time teaching role at VGCC, Peralta volunteers his time helping Spanish-speaking immigrants integrate into the community.

The award cites Peralta “for devoting his professional life to teaching thousands of young rural North Carolinians not only the Spanish language, but instilling in them the appreciation of other cultures and the value of freedom.”