Joseph Holt Jr. never got the opportunity to attend primary school with white students, but he tried.

"At the outset, we as a family decided that we were going to see this all the way through," Holt said.

Two years after the U.S. Supreme Court's 1954 landmark decision on Brown v. Topeka Board of Education, which made discrimination in schools unconstitutional, Holt tried to enroll in Raleigh schools.

He never got in, but Thursday, Holt came to Cary Academy to speak to kids about his struggle.

"I think particularly for this generation of kids, it seems like such ancient history to hear about things that happened in the civil right's movement," said Shani Barrax Moore, director of diversity for Cary Academy.

The private school presented Holt with an award for his courage.

It was the first award he's ever received for his efforts.
Holt also answered questions from students.

"Their questions showed that they were very interested and had a keen interest for what happened in that point in time," Holt said.

When he looks at the audience, Holt sees an entirely different school system.

Though he never got a chance to attend a diverse school, Holt says his efforts were successful.

"Diversity was not a household word when I was young, but our objective was of course for me to enroll in an all white school," he said. "My parents and I were the beginning, I think, of Raleigh's move toward diversity."