Joshua Packwood took the road less traveled when he chose Morehouse College four years ago.

Jessica McGowan/AJC (ENLARGE)

Joshua Packwood, Morehouse College's first white valedictorian, gives a speech to guests and graduates in attendance to Morehouse's 124th Commencement ceremony in Century Campus in Atlanta on Sunday

RELATED: • Video: Why Joshua Packwood picked Morehouse • Photos: Morehouse men graduate Higher education Georgia State gets grant to study school bullying  Education data system key to additional federal stimulus money  Bright spots seen in individual school CRCT results  Online school enrollment soars in summer  CRCT results due this week  Interactive database: They charge, we pay Topic page: Atlanta universities and colleges

And Sunday morning he made history, becoming the historically black, all-male college's first white valedictorian.

Despite the difference in skin color, he said he sees no difference between himself and his more than 500 fellow graduates.

"Though there may be diversity of race, ethnicity, religion or background, we are all brothers of Morehouse College," Packwood, 22, said during his valedictory address.

Packwood's mother, Kim Packwood was there to celebrate her son's accomplishment.

"I'm so proud, it's beyond words," she said. "My heart is full."

Packwood, a Kansas City, Mo.-native, graduated with a bachelor's degree in economics and a perfect 4.0 grade-point average.

Graduating under new college president Robert Franklin, Packwood lived up to the president's charge to be a "Renaissance Man."

He was elected to Phi Beta Kappa National Honor Society, has studied abroad in China, London, and Switzerland, and has landed a job as an analyst for financial giant Goldman Sachs in New York City.

Packwood has said he came to Morehouse because of the air of high expectations surrounding the school.

"It cultivates you to be a well rounded [person]," he said before the ceremony. "It expects you to be a servant leader, a scholar, but also an enjoyable person."

The call to become a Morehouse Man will stay in the family, it seems.

In the fall, younger brother John will be a freshman at Morehouse, likely majoring in marketing.

"Just him being here, and coming here to visit him helped me decide," John Packwood said.

Does the younger Packwood feel pressure in the shadow of big brother?

"It's always had big shoes to fill," John Packwood said. "But I've always tried to make my own path."

In his address, the valedictorian acknowledged his place among the ranks of top black college alumnus, invoking educator W.E.B. DuBois' assertion that 10 percent of the population must aspire to leadership.

"We are the Talented 10th," Packwood said, citing a phrase from DuBois' writings.

Morehouse's commencement speaker, California community activist and philanthropist Emmett Carson, challenged graduates to take charge of their generation.

"We are an endangered species in desperate need of a new generation of your leadership," Carson said.

But it was Packwood who garnered much of the national media attention as the school's first white valedictorian.

As Packwood wrapped up his speech, he became emotional.

"For four years, you have given me inspiration," he said to his classmates. "I thank each and every one of you for making your ancestors proud, and for making me proud."