Born in Wake Forest in 1931, Vernon D. Malone was a longtime teacher, administrator, county commissioner, and local legislator in Wake County. He was the first chairman of the Wake County school board following the 1976 merger of the Raleigh and Wake School Systems and devoted his life to improving education for all students. As the highest honor awarded by Wake Education Partnership, it is given to someone who has demonstrated an exceptional commitment to public education and shares the personal qualities of the late Senator Vernon Malone, who passed away in 2009.

Vernon Malone lived and worked his entire life in Raleigh and its surrounding communities.  For close to four decades he held an elective office. A black man who came of age during the era of segregation, he developed a firm belief that every child, regardless of race, could reach their full potential if given a solid education.