Born on April 19, 1907, in Malate, Manila, to Santiago Peralta and Cipriana Guidote.
Graduated from P. Burgos Elementary School, Manila; finished three years of the stationary engineering course at the Philippine School of Arts and Trades; earned the E.T.C. at the Philippine Normal School, the B.S.E. and M.A. degrees at the National Teachers College, and his Ed.D at Stanford University, California, U.S.A. Other universities attended: College of Law, Far Eastern University; Graduate School, Centro Escolar University.
In the province of Rizal, he became model and demonstration elementary school principal, supervising principal; and in the former Office of Adult Education, worked as adult education organizer-supervisor.
At the National Teachers College, he became a college instructor, college registrar, supervisor of normal teaching training department, director of summer school, secretary of the graduate school, member of the graduate faculty, director of the graduate school, vice president for academic affairs, vice president for administrative affairs, executive vice president, , and on March 22, 1969, the fourth President of the National Teachers College, the first alumnus to hold this position through unanimous election by the NTC Board of Trustees.4
He was an Insular Pensionado (from Rizal) to the Philippine Normal School, Manila, in 1930-1931; UNESCO Fellow (Teacher Education and Educational Administration) in the USA in 1948-1949; member of the Bangkok Committee (UNESCO-sponsored) which prepared the document covering 17 Asian countries: “Perspective of Educational Development in Asia – A Draft Asian Model,” later adopted and published by UNESCO: “An Asian Model of Development: Perspective 1965-1980.”
Aamong his accomplishments were the following:
- Listed in Who is Who in the Philippines (1957)
- Past lecturer: YMCA Leadership Seminars, Philippine Air Force Officers School, National Defense College, Asian Institute for the Training of Teacher Educators (UNESCO-sponsored)
- Active participant in various symposia on Graduate Education in different universities/colleges all over the country under the auspices of the Philippine Association for Graduate Education (PAGE) of which he was president for three years; on Teacher Education under the auspices of the Philippine Association for Teacher Education (PAFTE); and the Philippine Center for Professional Management, Manila.
- Member of the technical committees of the Board of National Education and Department of Education: elementary education, teacher education, and higher education.
- Educational consultant, Foundation University in Dumaguete City
- Member, Philippine Accrediting Association of Schools, Colleges and Universities (PAASCU) Survey Teams for Ateneo de Manila University, XAvier University, and Siliman University.
- Past member: United Nations Fellow Association, Philippine Asociation of University Professors, Philippine Childhood Education Association, National Education Association (U.S.A. – Life Member), Association for Higher Education (U.S.A.), Phi Delta Kappa (Philippine Chapter), Philippine National Historical Society.
- Past board member: PNC Alumni Association, NTC Alumni Association, Philippine Society for Curriculum Development, Philippine Association of Colleges and Universities (PACU)
- Vice President, Philippine Association for the Advancement of Literacy
- President, Philippine Association for Teacher Education (PAFTE)
He is a notable teacher, researcher, auhor of books (Current Issues in Philippine Education, Challenges to Filipino Education, TEachers and Nation Building, among others). He was a former education columnist at the Manila Chronicle; former Associate Editor of Filipino Child Life; and contributor to various professional journals. Participant in regional, national and international conferences on teacher education, educational administration, curriculum development, higher education, and guidance education.
Married to Victoria C. Peralta, former supervisor of Quezon City Public Schools, he has two children, Zenaida and Cresencio, Jr. Dr. Peralta returned to his Creator on June 24, 1987.
