Dan-el Padilla Peralta
Photo: John Jameson
Princeton senior Dan-el Padilla Peralta has been named the recipient
of the 2006 Daniel M. Sachs Class of 1960 Graduating Scholarship.
The award, one of the highest honors given to Princeton undergraduates,
was established in 1970 to provide a senior with the opportunity to
study, work or travel abroad after graduation. It will fund Peralta's
tuition and living expenses for the next two years as he attends
Worcester College at Oxford University to read for a second bachelor's
degree in classics-literae humaniores. The program requires study of a
combination of topics drawn from language and literature, history,
philosophy and archaeology.
A resident of New York City and a graduate of the Collegiate School,
Peralta is an A.B. candidate in classics. He also is pursuing a
certificate in the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International
Affairs.
"I am thrilled to be named the 37th Sachs Scholar," Peralta said. "I
look forward with eager anticipation to my studies at Oxford in the
fall, and I hope to continue the distinguished tradition of Sachs
Scholars at Worcester College. I would like to thank the Sachs
advisers, for providing me with such a wonderful opportunity; my
professors, for submitting recommendations on my behalf; my friends at
Princeton, for keeping me sane; and my family, for their loving
support."
Classmates and friends established the scholarship in memory of Daniel
Sachs, who starred in football and lacrosse at Princeton before
attending Oxford's Worcester College as a Rhodes Scholar. He died of
cancer at age 28. The award is given to the senior who best exemplifies
Sachs' character, intelligence and commitment, and whose scholarship is
most likely to benefit the public.
For his senior thesis in classics, Peralta is examining four Roman
stones owned by the University, re-publishing the epitaphs carved upon
them and researching their historical and social context, paleography
and iconography. This project will culminate in an exhibition at
Firestone Library in the spring. For his senior thesis in the Wilson
School, he is researching the implementation of socioeconomic
integration in school districts with a history of court-supervised
desegregation.
"He's a very exceptional student," said Harriet Flower, associate
professor of classics, who has taught Peralta in a graduate-level
seminar and is serving as his senior thesis adviser. "He's doing an
original piece of research for his senior thesis, which is a pretty
remarkable thing. The breadth of his interests sets him apart. For
example, he's working with a marble analysis on the stones. So he's not
just looking at them as historical or archaeological artifacts, he's
also getting into the nitty-gritty science. There are, in fact, very
few people -- even professionals -- who are crossing over like that."
Peralta's career aspirations include teaching classics at the
university level. He also hopes to devote some time to work in the
public policy sector of the field of education, specifically in the
promotion of equal access for students from minority and
disenfranchised groups.
Peralta previously was recognized for his academic achievements at
Princeton with the Freshman First Honor Prize, the Shapiro Prize and
the Van de Velde Prize for Junior Independent Work in the Wilson School.
He has served as a counselor and a program leader for New York City's
Prep for Prep program. Before enrolling in the Collegiate School,
Peralta participated in this program, which identifies talented
students from minority group backgrounds and prepares them for
placement in independent high schools.
On the Princeton campus, he was co-creator and co-host of "The
Professor Show," a talk show on student radio station WPRB that
featured interviews with Princeton faculty. He also has served as a
peer academic adviser for Rockefeller College, a mentor for the Black
Student Union and a board member for Acción Latina.
