Students Honored at RVCC with Annual Robeson Achievement Awards

Middle and high school students from Somerset and Hunterdon counties were honored for their achievements at the 31st Annual Paul Robeson Youth Achievement Awards, held April 7 at Raritan Valley Community College in Branchburg. The event was sponsored by the College’s Paul Robeson Institute for Ethics, Leadership and Social Justice.

The evening featured a keynote address by Dr. Jennifer Pearce-Morris, RVCC Associate Professor of Sociology. Dr. Pearce-Morris teaches Introduction to Sociology, Contemporary Social Problems, Marriage & Family, and Technological Literacy across the Social Sciences at RVCC.

The National Council of Negro Women and RVCC initiated the Paul Robeson Youth Achievement Awards program to pay tribute to the outstanding attainments of students in the two counties. The awards are named in honor of Paul Robeson, a Princeton native who grew up in Somerville and graduated from Somerville High School and Rutgers University. The awards were given in four areas in which Robeson excelled: Scholarship, the Arts, Community Service and Athletics, as well as special “Renaissance Awards” given to students who excel in a number of disciplines.

The Evelyn Field Visionary Award also was presented. The award pays tribute to the founding member of the RVCC Board of Trustees who was a dynamic and compassionate advocate for promoting diversity and equality on campus. In 1990 Mrs. Field established the Paul Robeson Youth Achievement Program to preserve Paul Robeson’s legacy as a role model for excellence.

More than 100 students were nominated for awards by their school counselors, teachers and administrators. A special committee of RVCC faculty and staff members selected the award recipients.

The following middle school students received special honors:

Paul Robeson Youth Middle School Art Achievement Award

Alicia Acosta Spencer - Franklin Middle School - Hamilton Street Campus

Erica Sollberger - North Plainfield Middle School

Paul Robeson Youth Middle School Athletic Achievement Award

Taylor Daniels - Hillsborough Middle School

Layla Gutierrez - North Plainfield Middle School

Paul Robeson Youth Middle School Community Service Achievement Award

Myles Cherette - Franklin Middle School - Hamilton Street Campus

Kaydence Frank - Green Brook Middle School

Paul Robeson Youth Middle School Scholarship Achievement Award

Jocelyn Knight - Franklin Middle School - Hamilton Street Campus

Derek Peters Jr. - Franklin Middle School - Hamilton Street Campus

Paul Robeson Youth Middle School Renaissance Award

Sean Souvenir - Readington Middle School

Evelyn Field Visionary Award - Middle School

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Jordyn Barcelo - North Plainfield Middle School

The following high school students received special honors:

Paul Robeson Youth High School Art Achievement Award

Olaoluwa Fawole – Bridgewater-Raritan High School

Shane Yerramilli - Hunterdon Central High School

Paul Robeson Youth High School Athletic Achievement Award

Shahkkai Matthews - Immaculata High School

Martin Wantong - Immaculata High School

Paul Robeson Youth High School Community Service Achievement Award

Sulakha Jama – Bridgewater-Raritan High School

Arden Primus - Immaculata High School

Paul Robeson Youth High School Scholarship Achievement Award

Diyara Cody - Academy for Health and Medical Sciences at Somerset Vocational & Technical High School

McKinley Pestano-Young - Hunterdon Central High School

Paul Robeson Youth High School Renaissance Award

Ariel Griffith - Hillsborough High School

Evelyn Field Visionary Award - Middle School

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Maya Mathews - Immaculata High School

The Paul Robeson Institute for Ethics, Leadership and Social Justice was founded in 1999 to preserve Paul Robeson’s legacy in the area where he came of age as an artist, athlete, orator, and scholar. The Institute envisions a global community of diverse cultures that embodies, through attitudes and behaviors, Paul Robeson’s ideals, beliefs, values and vision for a world of justice and peace.

The Paul Robeson Resource Room, located in RVCC’s Evelyn S. Field Library, is an information center for Robeson’s national and worldwide activities. Established in 2003, the Resource Room serves as a repository for educational materials, historical records and memorabilia of Robeson’s Somerville years and the worldwide accomplishments of people of African-American descent.

RVCC is located at 118 Lamington Road in Branchburg, NJ. For further information, visit www.raritanval.edu.

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