HILLSBOROUGH: Janelle Herbert wins Robeson award

One of six Hillsborough teens honored by college

   Middle school student Janelle Herbert was one of six Hillsborough teens honored April 7 at the 21st annual Paul Robeson Youth Achievement Awards reception at Raritan Valley Community College.
   She was one of 34 middle and high school students honored from Somerset and Hunterdon counties.
   The awards are named for Mr. Robeson, who graduated from Somerville High School and Rutgers University. He rose from humble beginnings to become a superior athlete, scholar, orator and linguist and a star in theater, film and on the concert stage.
   The awards, sponsored by the Paul Robeson Institute for Ethics, Leadership and Social Justice at RVCC, are given in four areas in which Mr. Robeson excelled: scholarship, the arts, community service and athletics.
   Janelle won in the “community” category. Five other Hillsborough Middle School students were recognized, as well as one from the high school.
   Mr. Robeson was an outspoken and controversial advocate of civil rights for African-Americans. Throughout Mr. Robeson’s career, he remained convinced that “art can bridge the gulf between white and black races.” Mr. Robeson died in 1976 at the age of 77.
   The evening featured a keynote address by Jerome C. Harris, Jr., managing director of the Harris Organization, a strategic consulting firm. He is chairman of the board of the N.J. Black Issues Convention.