Joshua Packwood is a minority among minority, as the first white valedictorian of historically black Morehouse College whose distinguished alumni include Martin Luther King, Jr., Julian Bond, Spike Lee, Samuel L. Jackson, David Satcher, Lerone Bennett, Jr., and Calvin O. Butts, III.

“Because I’m one of the only white students, it’s easy to call me ‘the white boy,’ I’m naturally going to stand out,” says Packwood.

But Packwood, 22, doesn’t stand out solely because he is white or has maintained a 4.0 grade point average. For those who don’t know him, what is surprising is that a Rhodes Scholar finalist turned down a full scholarship to Columbia University to attend the all-black men’s university.

This came naturally to Packwood, who attended a predominantly black high school.

“A large majority of my friends, like all my girlfriends have been minorities,” says Packwood. “So it was very, it was kind of strange that I always kind of gravitated to the black community.”

Source: White valedictorian: A first for historically black Morehouse

Morehouse has admitted white students since the 1960s, although they are a minority on campus. An article from the AP notes that Packwood’s recruiter at Morehouse assumed he was black.

When Packwood applied to Morehouse, he had frequent conversations with George Gray, an alumnus who was a recruiter at the school. Gray was impressed by Packwood’s credentials and spent months trying to talk the sought-after senior into choosing Morehouse over other elite schools.

“He had outstanding numbers,” said Gray, now director of admissions at historically black Philander Smith College in Little Rock, Ark. “He was the kind of kid we were looking for to be a presidential scholar.”

After several conversations, Packwood began to suspect that Gray had no idea that he was white. His suspicions were confirmed when one of Gray’s calls caught Packwood in the middle of track practice.

“Don’t let the white kids walk you down,” Gray quipped.

“Wait,” Packwood responded. “You know I’m white, right?”

Silence. Uneasy laughter. Confirmation.

“The challenge was to get the best student that we could, and Josh definitely fit that,” Gray said.

And for Packwood, knowing that he had been picked on his merits, and not as a token white recruit, made the difference.

“That said I could come here and, ironically, be accepted for who I am,” Packwood said. “I thought I made the right decision then, and I know I made the right decision now.”

It was not as if this was the first time Packwood experienced life in the minority. He was among the few white students in his class at Grandview Senior High School in suburban Kansas City, Mo. He has mixed-race siblings and his mother was married to an African-American. Packwood’s experiences growing up have helped him navigate black culture while remaining comfortable with his own complexion.

Source: Historically Black College Honors First White Valedictorian

Joshua Packwood is profiled and interviewed in this AP video.

Joshua Packwood’s achievement has brought press attention not only to himself but to the distinguished history and tradition of Morehouse College and the “Morehouse mystique.”

See also:

• NPR Audio: Valedictorian Makes History
• Unlikely First At Historic Black College

Joshua Packwood, First White Valedictorian in Morehouse College’s 141 Year History

Alia Sabur broke a 300-year-old record to become the world’s youngest professor. That is just one of many accomplishments in her 19 years of life.

Alia has been setting records and making history starting with reading at 8 months old. Her IQ was determined off the charts. She went from 4th grade to college, earning a B.S. in Applied Mathematics summa cum laudeÊfrom Stony Brook University at age 14, the youngest female in American history. She then earned an M.S. and Ph.D. (ABD) in Materials Science and Engineering from Drexel University. Alia is the youngest ever to receive fellowships and awards from the Dept of Defense, NASA, GAANN and NSF.

(Source: Alia Sabur official Web site)

She made an appearance on the Today Show on April 23.

Perhaps in Alia Sabur’s wildly advanced studies she came across a famous quote from Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

“Knowing is not enough. We must apply,” the German writer once observed.

That could serve as explanation for what prompted the 19-year-old to become the youngest college professor in history.

[…]

With an unlimited future ahead of her, Sabur directed her first career choice to teaching. She was three days short of her 19^th birthday in February when she was hired to become a professor at Konkuk University in Seoul, Korea.

This distinction made her the youngest college professor in history, according to the Guinness Book of World Records, beating the previous record held by Colin Maclaurin in 1717.

Maclaurin was a student of physicist Isaac Newton. Sabur said she is merely gravitating toward putting what she has learned to good use.

“I really feel I can help a lot of people,” she said.

(Source: World’s youngest professor can’t legally drink)

See also:

• Mahalo: Alia Sabur
• New York Times: Reading at 8 Months? That Was Just the Start