Pronouns: he/him/él

Roots: México

Job Title: Rural Bilingual Victim Advocate at the 30th Judicial District Alliance, Inc.

Sylva, NC

Jose Perez

Rural Bilingual Victim Advocate at the 30th Judicial District Alliance, Inc.

In 2003, Jose's Parents made a difficult choice of leaving their country in hopes of finding a better life in the U.S. At the age of six, Jose's brother and sister began their journey to the U.S. to reunite with their family in North Carolina. After receiving DACA and graduating from Brevard High school in Transylvania County NC in 2015, Jose struggled to find educational opportunities that were affordable and available to non-citizens. With little information available regarding educational opportunities with a non-citizen status, Jose turned to Blue Ridge Community College where he received a business sponsorship from his former employer Gwynn Valley Camp which allowed him to pay in-state tuition. After two years, Jose obtained his associate degree in 2018 and set his sights on a bachelor's degree. Jose then went on to pursue a double major at Western Carolina University in History and Education where he graduated Magna Cum Laude. After graduation, Jose accepted an employment opportunity to advocate for the rights of immigrants across 7 counties in Western North Carolina. He now works as a Bilingual Victim Advocate with the 30th Judicial District Domestic Violence-Sexual Assault Alliance.