Marcelite J. Harris (January 16, 1943 – September 7, 2018) was an American who became the first

African-American African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an Race and ethnicity in the United States, ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American ...

female

general officer A general officer is an officer of high rank in the armies, and in some nations' air forces, space forces, and marines or naval infantry. In some usages the term "general officer" refers to a rank above colonel."general, adj. and n.". OED O ...

of the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the air service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part of the United States Army Signal ...

Education and early career

Born Marcelite Jordan to Cecil O'Neal Jordan and Marcelite Terrill Jordan, in

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 in ...

, she graduated from

Spelman College Spelman College is a private, historically black, women's liberal arts college in Atlanta, Georgia. It is part of the Atlanta University Center academic consortium in Atlanta. Founded in 1881 as the Atlanta Baptist Female Seminary, Spelman re ...

, earning her

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...

in speech and drama and completed Officer Training School,

Lackland Air Force Base Lackland Air Force Base is a United States Air Force (USAF) base located in Bexar County, Texas. The base is under the jurisdiction of the 802d Mission Support Group, Air Education and Training Command (AETC) and an enclave of the city of Sa ...

, Texas, in 1965 and held a variety of assignments in the Air Force. Harris’s career included many "firsts", including being the first female aircraft maintenance officer, one of the first two female air officers commanding at the

United States Air Force Academy The United States Air Force Academy (USAFA) is a United States service academy in El Paso County, Colorado, immediately north of Colorado Springs. It educates cadets for service in the officer corps of the United States Air Force and Uni ...

, and the Air Force’s first female Director of Maintenance. She served as a

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in 1800. ...

social aide during the Carter administration. Her service medals and decorations include the Bronze Star, the Presidential Unit Citation, and the

Vietnam Service Medal The Vietnam Service Medal is a military award of the United States Armed Forces established on 8 July 1965 by order of President Lyndon B. Johnson. The medal is awarded to recognize service during the Vietnam War by all members of the U.S. A ...

. Harris retired as a

major general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in 1997, the highest ranking female officer in the Air Force and the Nation’s highest ranking African-American woman in the Department of Defense. Upon retirement from the Air Force, she served NASA as the Florida Site Director and Logistics Process Owner for

United Space Alliance :''In this article, USA refers to the United Space Alliance, not the United States.'' United Space Alliance (USA) was a spaceflight operations company. USA was a joint venture which was established in August 1995 as a Limited Liability Company ...

, the company managing the nation’s shuttle program. Besides her Spelman B.A., she holds a B.S. in Business Management from the

University of Maryland University College The University of Maryland Global Campus (UMGC, formerly University of Maryland University College) is a public university in Adelphi, Maryland. It is the largest of the University System of Maryland campuses. Established in 1947, UMGC focuses on ...

. In 1999, Harris was awarded an Honorary Doctorate Degree from Spelman College. She was a member of

Delta Sigma Theta Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. () is a historically African American sorority. The organization was founded by college-educated women dedicated to public service with an emphasis on programs that assist the African American community. Delta ...

sorority.

Later career

Harris was a Treasurer of the Atlanta Branch of the

National Association for the Advancement of Colored People The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) is a civil rights organization in the United States, formed in 1909 as an interracial endeavor to advance justice for African Americans by a group including W. E. ...

and served as a Director on the Board of Peachtree Hope Charter School. On September 15th, 2010, she was appointed by President

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

to serve as a member of the Board of Visitors for the

. The Board inquires into the morale, discipline, curriculum, instruction, physical equipment, fiscal affairs, academic methods and other matters relating to the Academy which the Board decides to consider.

Personal

Harris was married to Lt. Col. Maurice Harris. They had two children named Steven and Tenecia. She was buried with full military honors on February 7, 2019, alongside her husband in Arlington National Cemetery.

Awards and decorations

Other achievements

:1990 - Woman of the Year, National Organization of Tuskegee Airmen, also listed in "Who's Who Among Black Americans", "Who's Who in America'' and "Who's Who Among American Business Women" :1990 - Outstanding Young Woman of America :1991 - Most Prestigious Individual, Dollars and Sense Magazine :1992 - Woman of Enterprise, Journal Recording Publishing Co., Oklahoma City :1995 - "Women of Distinction" Award, Thomas W. Anthony Chapter, Air Force Association :1995 - "Military African American Woman" for contributions to the Department of Defense, National Political Congress of Black Women, Inc. :1995 - "Black Woman of Courage," National Federation of Black Women Business Owners :1996 - Ellis Island Medal of Honor :2010 - "Trailblazer Award," Black Girls Rock Foundation

Effective dates of promotion

References

External links

"Major General Marcelite J. Harris"
Women’s International Center; accessed August 21, 2006
Maj. Gen. Harris's career biography
at US Air Force website
USAFA Board of Visitors, accessed 2/5/2011
{{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Marcelite J. 1943 births 2018 deaths African-American female military personnel United States Air Force personnel of the Vietnam War American female military personnel of the Vietnam War Burials at Arlington National Cemetery Female generals of the United States Air Force Spelman College alumni Military personnel from Houston Recipients of the Legion of Merit Delta Sigma Theta members African-American women aviators American women aviators African-American aviators Aviators from Texas African-American United States Air Force personnel African Americans in the Vietnam War